"We chose Tyfone because they had a direct interface to our core data processing system and also because they were ahead of other providers in the mobile payments arena,” Laura Thompson, senior vice president and chief information officer of OCCU, told TMCnet in a recent interview. “We knew we wanted to head in that direction in the future. “

Founded in 2004, Oregon-based Tyfone has a goal of enabling device and carrier independence for mobile financial services to the world's leading organizations. Tyfone creates value for organizations and their customers by providing a turnkey infrastructure (software on the phone, middleware platform, and a memory card based token for the secure element/contactless payments/NFC), according to company officials.

Tyfone’s mobile banking platform was created to increase bank profitability and to bring banking customers and their financial institutions closer together by enabling banking from any place, any time. This added convenience delivers relevant information to its mobile bankers and makes it easier for financial institutions to keep customers and stem attrition, officials explain.

 “We conducted an online survey of our members to gauge interest levels in mobile banking,” Thompson said.  “Our members said that they were very interested in mobile banking and very likely to use the product if we offered it.  We also wanted to offer mobile banking to attract a younger demographic.”

“[The partnership] benefits us because we cannot always provide the physical convenience that a large bank can, but this allows us to provide convenience and access through other channels,” she said. “This also benefits our members and helps them manage their money because they can set various alerts and receive text messages when hitting certain thresholds.”

The partnership will also help OCCU enjoy lowered service overhead expenses by converting non-online bankers to self-servicing mobile bankers, according to Tyfone’s Director of Business Development Mark Miyamoto.

 “Digital wallet aside, Tyfone's mobile banking features alone are very unique which benefits the mobile banker as well as the FI,” said Miyamoto. “The mobile banker is getting relevant data with an easy to navigate interface. Mobile bankers appreciate the ability to set up custom alerts and even customize their mobile banking environment to best suit their needs. Features like these translate into a more loyal member and better ROI for the FI.”

“As mobile banking evolves into the digital wallet, Tyfone’s unique ability to provision enhanced StrongAuth security and NFC digital wallet modules on the u4ia platform make Tyfone’s offering make a lot of sense,” added Miyamoto. 

“Tyfone offers more than just mobile banking,” he added. “Now more than ever, FIs are realizing that the digital wallet will be a reality sooner than later.  The announcements from Google (News - Alert), ISIS and others are accelerating the need for FIs to look deeper into their mobile strategy because technology is moving so fast.  FIs are, in turn, realizing the benefit of a unified solution that offers a clear evolutionary path from mobile banking to the digital wallet, thereby protecting their investments today from obsolescence tomorrow.”

So far, the partnership has been working extremely well for OCCU, according to Thompson.

“Tyfone was ahead of other providers in the mobile payment trials they were conducting,” she said. “We knew that mobile access to accounts was just the first step and that we wanted to get into mobile payments down the road.  Tyfone was already set up to accommodate this.  Since we have started working with Tyfone, they have been very responsive and flexible.”