Full-service bank opens as app only, no branches. BankMobile says it is the first full-service mobile-only bank.

Crain's New York reports:

Taking a trip to your local bank may no longer be necessary.

BankMobile, a division of Customers Bank, launched Wednesday, claiming to be the first bank to allow customers to open checking and savings accounts and even get a credit line solely through a mobile app.

BankMobile hopes to cater to wired millennials, who are expected to make up 50% of the workforce by 2020.

Of course an app still can't dispense cash, the most analog of financial instruments. To solve that problem, BankMobile will offer customers access to 55,000 ATMs nationwide, and reimburse them the cost of ATM surcharges. The ATMs, however, must be part of the STAR network. There are about 5,800 STAR network ATMs in the tristate area, according to the state Department of Labor. Prominent retail banks Bank of America, JPMorgan Chase and Citigroup, though, are not part of the STAR network.

For Jay Sidhu, CEO of Customers Bank and BankMobile, the launch represents a second chance at getting mobile banking right. During the dot-com bubble, he spearheaded 1stwedbankdirect.com, Sovereign Bank's attempt at branchless banking, which lasted about a year.

At a press conference at The Harvard Club of New York Wednesday, Mr. Sidhu said the bank is the first of its kind to charge no fees to customers while operating as an app for tablets and smartphones but without a retail presence. (Customers Bank has only 13 branches nationwide, with just one in New York City.)

"We want to become America's true bank that is in the palm of your hands," said Mr. Sidhu.

Branchless banks—which are Web-only—make up only a small part of the U.S. consumer banking market, holding less than 5% of household deposits, according to consulting firm AlixParters.

Guess what's going to happen to the demand for real estate concerning bricks and mortar banking branches if they takes off?