These days you can do it all online or via your mobile. You can set up a pin number for a new card, you can set a limit on your daily spending, you can report your card lost or stolen or pop your card on hold until you locate it, and you can search and view your transactions, all via the interwebs. You can download a balance summary (to verify your income), you can apply to increase or decrease your credit limit, and most importantly, you can just log in and see all the stuff that’s happening between all your accounts, including your super, right there on the screen.

These days, some banks even allow you to pay for purchases with your mobile, so you don’t even need to carry your card. It’s all pretty simple too, and your bank probably has an online tutorial like this to help you use all the relevant features.

Here’s another scenario: You’re at a restaurant eating dinner with eight of your closest mates. The restaurant has a passive aggressive sign warning against splitting bills. No one wants to shout the whole group, and no one has the exact cash to pay for their own dinner. This is usually the part where some people lose out and some people gain. Five bucks goes here and ten bucks goes there and somehow, you end up paying quite a bit extra for your dinner.

But, through mobile banking, everyone could transfer their share to a single person who can then pay the whole amount. Sometimes if they’re with the same bank, the transfers will be immediate, and there are services such as Pay to Mobile that allow you to send money securely to friends with just their phone number. Split bill, no mess.

This could also work with your other payments, like rent, electricity bills and the emergency money your parents give you when you’re totally broke. You can even set up automated payments for regular bills, loan repayments, and make international bank transfers.

If you’re transferring money around pretty regularly, especially with your parents or your partner, you might want to consider getting a joint account.

There are two basic ways to do this - the first is to have your own account, where you allow someone, such as a parent, guardian, partner or friend, access to that account for an amount of time. The second option is to open a joint account with two or more people. This option is often used by couples who want to share their money, or even in a share house where housemates want to start an account in order to evenly split bills and rent.

Dude, online and mobile banking is a breeze.

This information is general in nature only and might not apply to your personal circumstance. When in doubt always seek professional guidance.