E-banking with a conscience
Using online banking is a means to make people's lives easier. It saves them the extra time it takes to get to and from the bank and wait in line which are the common drawbacks of traditional, banking. Also, it allows for the luxury of banking transactions to take place even in the comfort of one's own home. Therefore, when people usually think of e-banking, it seems unlikely that any connection to environmental or social impacts will be conjured up. However, the lack of a paper trail or fuel consumption that traditional banking requires does not mean that e-banking doesn't also make an ecological impact of its own. In fact, the negative consequences of paying a bill online can be said to add up to the cost it takes to produce four aluminium drink cans. Furthermore, although e-banking does not use a branch, it still involves administration, offices and internet infrastructure which means it significantly impacts electricity usage. E-banking is not likely to completely replace branch banking, instead the two are likely to compliment one another. Branch banking, for example, continues to provide cash payment services as well as inter-personal services that is especially beneficial for those people who do not have access to online banking. Taking all of this into consideration brings to light the importance of on-line banking and its continuous social and environmental impact.
