Members who use mobile banking bring in 36% more revenue thanbranch-only members and are less than half as likely to leave theircredit unions, according to a study by Fiserv released thisweek.

The survey of eight credit unions and nine banks conducted overa 12-month period in 2014 and 2015 found that within three monthsof adopting mobile banking, the average number of monthly POStransactions for credit union members rose by 19%, their ATM transactions jumped 25% and their bill paytransactions leapt 13%. Mobile banking consumers also bought morefrom their credit unions, holding 2.3 products versus 1.3 forbranch-only consumers, the study said.

“Increasedmobile adoption and usage will net a larger ROI for financialinstitutions that proactively work to build a robust mobile channel– one that serves the needs of the highly valuable mobile bankingconsumer,” the report said.

Some of that value also appears to come from loyalty. Theattrition rate for members of large credit unions who used mobilebanking was just 4.9% compared to 13.4% for members who weren'tenrolled, the study found. And among medium and small creditunions, the attrition rates were even lower – 2.8% – for mobilebankers.

The study also found 53% of mobile banking users were under the age of 55.

“Consumers in the study who use mobile banking are among themost active and engaged – and most profitable,” it said. “Althoughmobile bankers can be found in every generation, usage skewsyounger with millennials and Gen X leading the way.”

A full 30% or more of customers and members at large nationalbanks and credit unions have adopted mobile banking, according toFiserv, but just 11% of the study's 240,000 credit union membersand 14.4% of the study's 283,721 banking customers had done so, itsaid. Achieving that 30% adoption rate could mean as much as $1.6million in incremental annual revenue for the credit unions in thestudy, Fiserv added.

Fiserv said financial institutions can increase mobile bankingadoption by offering a wide range of features, cross-selling mobile banking when consumers log in to onlinebanking and bill payment, advertising the financial institution'ssecurity measures, showing how mobile banking is helpful, andengaging with front-line staff and on social media whenpromoting it.

Credit union branch visits dropped 32% in the three monthsafter members adopted mobile banking, going from 4.4 to threetransactions per month, according to the report. Branch visits arelikely to shift to high-touch, high-engagement transactions withstaff members, which could trigger optimization of the retail space, it noted.