“Nokia Money” To Turn Nokia Into World’s Largest Mobile Bank

Looks like Nokia is planning to make a splash outside of gadgets and technology and into banking. Yup, that’s right, Nokia wants to be the world’s largest mobile bank. Nokia is planning to do it through a program recently announced called “Nokia Money.” Nokia Money will let mobile users transfer money, pay bills, shop, among other things, with their mobile handsets.

Nokia is looking beyond just the developed nations to market Nokia Money. They’re hoping to fill in the gap of over 2.4 billion mobile phone users who do not have a bank account or any kind of banking service, majority of them living in a third world country. Nokia wants to step into that void and change the banking system by allowing customers to perform basic banking tasks on their mobile phones.

Nokia won’t be going into this alone. Obopay, a U.S. based mobile banking firm, will be backing up Nokia’s plunge into the mobile banking market. Obopay is the obvious choice for Nokia since they already own a minority stake in Obopay.Obopay has been around since 2005, and has experience in the mobile banking market.

For many without access to a bank or banking services, Nokia Money could become the answer they’re looking for. And of course for Nokia, it’s a business opportunity that could lead to billions of dollars in revenue by targeting an untapped market.

Plans to show off “Nokia Money” are scheduled for next week at Nokia World in Suttgart. Expect Nokia Money to hit markets sometime in 2010.

(Via Intomobile)