Time to Teach Students How to Bank via Cell Phone

R U Ready???
Well, ready or not mobile banking is here! It is available for anyone willing to give a try! Sites such as Obopay allow anyone to sign up and create a mobile banking account. The mobile banking allows anyone to send or accept money by sending a text message on a cell phone. No need for wallet, credit cards, change...etc. You send a text message to Obopay and the phone number of the recipient of the funds (the recipient does not need to be registered at Obopay!). Obopay does charge .25 cents to send funds (although it does not matter how much you send) and it does not cost the recipient any money. You can add money to your obopay account online with a credit card, bank account transfer, or even PayPal. People can also send you money via cell phone without an Obopay account!

Now that mobile banking is no longer a "futuristic" idea, shouldn't businesses and economic classes be teaching students how to deal with their finances in the mobile world? This is not the only mobile banking option, and it just touches the surface of the mobile banking possibilities!

Classroom Integration
Business/Economics Course
Teachers could set up a mobile account and students could responsibly spend and collect money from the account for a business related project. Obopay pay tracks who is sending money and where it is going.

Fund Raising
It might be an easy way to raise funds (since people do not have to have an Obopay account to send money). Since Obopay keeps track of all funds, senders, and recipents, it might be an easy way to keep track of finances.

A few other sites for mobile banking
Paymo
BilltoMobile


Thoughts????