Internet Banking – Benefits & Drawbacks You Must Be Aware Of
Internet banking is a big invention. The presence of internet banking in the banking arena has come across as a game changer. Internet banking has transformed the way you conduct bank transactions daily. Listed here are the various internet banking benefits and limitations that you must be aware of.
Benefits of internet banking
A few of the most crucial benefits of internet banking include –
Convenience – It is the single most vital advantage that outweighs any kind of shortcomings of net banking. Making payments and transactions right from the convenience and comfort of your office or home with just a click without stepping out is a big facility that no one would want to let go of. Keeping a close track of the accounts via the net is way faster and easier than visiting the bank for this specific purpose. Even facilities, which are non-transactional such as ordering chequebooks, updating accounts, raising an enquiry for the rate of interest, and figuring out the bank timing like Axis bank timings, SBI bank timings or for those timings of any other bank whose net banking you are using, etc. have become easier with net banking.
Better rate of interest – Banks stands to acquire considerable using net banking as it means lesser physical effort on their end. The requirement to acquire bigger spaces for work and employ a lot of staff to daily deal with customers is considerably reduced making it beneficial for the bank financially. This means the portion of savings accrued may be passed on to you as a customer on a higher deposit rate and in the case of a loan, it may be at a lower loan rate. To encourage the usage of net banking, most banks allow no or minimum deposit accounts for online banking at zero penalties on premature withdrawal.
Services – With technology, it has become very convenient for banks and you as a customer too to host wonderful services by easily logging in. These services involve financial planning potentials, functional budgeting or forecasting tools, investment analysis, loan calculators, equity trading platforms, etc. Moreover, many banks may even endow you with facilities for online tax preparation.
Mobility – Net banking is a step forwards in the form of mobile net banking. This accords unlimited mobility, permitting you to manage several financial transactions with ease at a go. The next crucial benefit of the mobile banking facility is it is great for the environment as it cuts the usage of paper, lowers pollution that otherwise would have been caused by travelling physically and does not contribute towards emissions.
Transferring money – With net banking, you can easily transfer your money from one bank account to another. You even can initiate intrabank and interbank transfers. Domestic and international transfers too are allowed. You can send the fund to your beneficiary in just an hour through money transfers like RTGS, NEFT or IMPS.
Booking deposits – Next benefit of net banking is that you conveniently can open recurring or fixed deposit accounts on the online platform. You can select your preferred deposit kind whether the non-cumulative or cumulative, amount and the investment term.
Recharging and paying bills – You can make utility bill payments like telephone, electricity, gas, etc. with just a click from the convenience and comfort of your office or home. You even can enable the auto debit facility, which can prevent you from missing out on any payment.
Checking balances and tracking account – With net banking, you can constantly track your account as well as check your account balance at any time from anywhere whether you are placed in India or somewhere outside India. You can get the mini statement and even download your account statements for any month or year from the view account statement option available on the net banking platform.
Placing orders for the bank products – Net banking permits you to place orders for important bank products like your debit card, credit card, chequebook, passbook, etc.
Add-on services – There is a wide range of add-on services that you can use, including selling or purchasing mutual funds, purchasing insurance, applying for different kinds of loans, etc. Your net banking account even permits you to set up an auto payment facility for all your recurring expenditures.
Drawbacks of using internet banking
Like everything, net banking has a few drawbacks you must be aware of –
Zero cashless deposit facility
There is zero provision for depositing your cash. For depositing your cash, you will have to approach your bank branch or the deposit money machine for depositing the cash.
Net requirement
Your accessibility to net banking services may be affected if no stable internet connection is available. Also, it may be impacted when the server of the bank is down. In such a case, you must be aware of the bank’s operation timing. For instance, suppose you have an account with Axis bank and the net banking service of this bank is not working. Here, in this scenario being about the Axis bank timings, will allow you to visit the bank at the correct time and get your work done within the deadline.
Internet fraud
You may become a victim of internet fraud if you fail to comply with security measures suggested by the financial institution like creating a strong passcode, sharing the passcode, or forgetting to log out from your net banking account once you have used it.
Relationship
Online bank transactions take a massive toll on relation building aspect with the banker. Remember in earlier days, when there was no net banking then you had to physically visit the bank for all your work. This allowed you to build a good relationship with the banker. With the introduction of net banking, now you do not require visiting the bank for most of your work, which makes it difficult for you to build a relationship with a banker. In case you require forming a relationship with the banker for lower rates on your loan, then you may consider approaching your bank physically for a few of your chores.