IBM and Monitise Help Financial Institutions Capitalize on Commerce

ARMONK, N.Y. and LONDON, July 21, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- IBM (NYSE: IBM) and Monitise (LSE: MONI) today announced an expanded, multi-year global alliance to deliver cloud-based mobile commerce solutions to help financial services institutions embrace the mobile channel and better engage with customers.

As part of today's news, the expansion of the alliance will bring together the IBM MobileFirst portfolio of offerings as well as IBM's financial services and retail industry expertise with Monitise's mobile banking and payments capabilities, spearheaded globally as an IBM Global Business Services' initiative.

"As the market for mobile payments is expanding, we are continuing to invest in the IBM MobileFirst portfolio to address this opportunity," said Steve Mills, Senior Vice President and Group Executive. "The combination of our capabilities with Monitise will provide value to our clients, enhance the customer experience and drive business growth."

Financial institutions will gain access to data analytics to offer customers targeted services such as in-store engagement and location-based offerings that empower timely decision making and convenience. Financial services providers will be able to deploy new digital and mobile money solutions while reducing costs and driving new revenue streams.   

With increasing smartphone adoption around the world, the ubiquity of these devices has forever changed the way customers engage with banks and retailers. Additionally, with revenues from consumer-originated payments predicted to increase from $249 billion worldwide in 2012 to $460 billion in 2022¹, there are multiple opportunities for banks to capitalize on this growth via mobile money services.

"Mobile is increasingly becoming the primary way for us to bank, pay and buy. Central to our strategy and collaborations is a drive to enable the businesses we work with to adopt solutions that help them engage more effectively with existing customers and unlock new commercial opportunities," said Alastair Lukies, Chief Executive of Monitise plc. "At a time when money is becoming more digitized, this strategic alliance with IBM will support financial institutions across the world in developing effective cloud-based strategies that make a real difference to consumers' lives."

Monitise will draw from the expertise and resources of the IBM ExperienceOne portfolio and Interactive Experience practice, which improve customer engagement by using data analytics to deliver relevant, personalized brand experiences. In addition, IBM and Monitise plan to collaborate with IBM Ready Apps, a suite of industry-specific, pre-configured apps that can be easily customized and deployed. 

Monitise will also move its production hosting and cloud requirements to IBM, including SoftLayer. Clients will benefit in the future from Monitise's adoption of IBM BlueMix, a flexible, cost-effective development environment, while developers will be able to gain access to Monitise capabilities through IBM's developer ecosystem.

About IBM MobileFirst
IBM's 5,000 mobile experts have been at the forefront of mobile enterprise innovation. IBM has secured more than 4,300 patents in mobile, social and security, that have been incorporated into IBM MobileFirst solutions that enable enterprise clients to radically streamline and accelerate mobile adoption, help organizations engage more people and capture new markets.  For more information on IBM MobileFirst, visit the press kit or www.ibm.com/mobilefirst.  Follow @IBMmobile on Twitter, and see IBM MobileFirst on YouTube, Tumblr and Facebook.

About Monitise
Monitise (LSE: MONI) is a world leader in Mobile Money - banking, paying and buying with a mobile device. Leading banks, payments companies, retailers and mobile networks utilise Monitise's technology platforms and services to securely connect people with their money.

30 million consumers have registered for Monitise's patented technology to 'bank anywhere', 'pay anyone' and 'buy anything', accounting for $88bn of payments, purchases and transfers annually. Additionally, apps designed by the Group's Monitise Create and MEA divisions have been downloaded 30 million times. More information is available at www.monitise.com.

1 - Boston Consulting Group, "Global Payments 2013," September 2013

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release includes statements which may constitute forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, the accuracy of which are necessarily subject to risks, uncertainties, and assumptions as to future events that may not prove to be accurate.  Factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied include general economic conditions and the factors discussed in our most recent Form 10-K and other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.  IBM undertakes no obligation to update or revise any forward-looking statements whether as a result of new information, future events, or otherwise.

Media contacts
Ken Saunders
IBM Media Relations (UK)
44 207021 8422 
[email protected] 

Tara Tsapepas
IBM Media Relations (US)
212.671.9424
[email protected]

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SOURCE IBM