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87 per cent of UK adults use online banking
THE FIRST TRANSACTION
Dear HIW, It’s easy to send money now without even seeing it. When was the first online bank transfer?
David Kent
This is a system many people use regularly today, but is a recent evolution in money handling. The concept of electronic fund transfer comes from the mid-19th century, when telegraph companies started offering the service of sending money remotely via coded messages. In the mid-20th century, telex networks meant banks could exchange payment instructions electronically. It wasn’t until the 1980s that debit cards emerged, allowing people to access money straight from their bank accounts. Online banking services didn’t become mainstream until around 2010. This was when people were able to send money to friends or businesses from their computers.