Mobile ATM - Secure Mobile Banking System for Developing Countries using Mobile Phones

"Mobile ATM" is the joint project between the Department of Computer and System Science (DSV) of the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH) and School of Computing, University of Colombo (Sri Lanka), supported by SPIDER in 2008 and 2009. The goal of the project is to perform research, development, and prototype deployment in Sri Lanka of the "Mobile ATM" system with enhanced security features.

M-ATM system provides standard ATM services, but to people who use mobile phones. This approach is especially useful for rural areas in developing countries, where there are no ATM machines. With the proposed solution the bank sends its authorized agent with cash and a mobile phone to a rural area. People withdraw money by calling the bank, which confirms the transaction by sending authorization message to the bank agent. So, as an innovative solution, a person who is the authorized bank representative acts as an ATM terminal. Instead of a plastic ATM cards, people use their mobile phones to withdraw the money. The system can be extended so that post offices and even merchants may act as M-ATM agents and also can me used for other cash distribution transactions, like payment of salaries or agriculture subsidies.