Mobile network operator Airtel has partnered with Verifone Mobile Money to bring NFC contactless mobile payments to Ghana.
Under the deal, Airtel will provid NFC-enabled POS terminals to merchants around the Ghana. The company’s 1.5 million Airtel Money customers can then pay via mobile wallet with an NFC-enabled handsets or through a contactless sticker provided by Airtel. [Read more…]
Vodafone Group Plc will work with MTN Group Ltd., Africa’s largest wireless operator, to facilitate mobile-banking services in parts of the continent’s sub-Saharan region.
Writing in his latest annual “Gates Notes” letter, Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates highlighted the digital banking sector and observed that smartphones and mobile technology would define banking in Africa, especially in those communities where the cost of banking and a lack of infrastructure remain major barriers to entry.
[Read more…]
B.Shark, a Chinese company offering worldwide mobile payment solutions, recently collaborated with SPforum, the largest microblog dedicated to the Mobile Internet industry in China, to hold a forum about who will play the leading role in worldwide mobile payments. The discussion was lively, and experts from Paypal and Alipay participated, among others.
Some highlights from the forum include:
In the area of global payments, mobile payment can be divided into three areas geographically. “In Asian countries, especially Japan and South Korea, with the strong support from operators, a large quantity of applications and services based on NFC drive NFC payment forward; In Africa, only around 20%-30% of adults have bank accounts, mobile payment via telecom networks are successful, M-Pesa in Kenya is an example; In America and Europe, the redit card industry is matured, however operators also try to play a role. For example, Everything Everywhere, O2 and Vodafone, formed a joint venture to accelerate the uptake of mobile commerce in the U.K, and AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon also formed a joint venture mobile company named Isis utilizing near-field communication (NFC) technology in the U.S.A,” said ZhongYuan, Zhang, COO of B.Shark. “The fact that eBay bought Zong for $240 million in cash, shows the value of third-party mobile payments focused on operator billing.”
The mobile payment chain is very long. It includes telecom operators, banks, third-party mobile payment companies, mobile phone producers, etc. When all the parties cooperate, the mobile payment will move faster and more smoothly.
The Mobile World Congress in Barcelona hosted a Working Group for its “Mobile Money for the Unbanked” program. The group has now release a new report the outlines strategies for building the customer base of mobile money users.
The report, entitled “Driving Customer Usage of Mobile Money for the Unbanked” differentiates the marketing methods for airtime versus mobile money. From the MMU Blog, Neil Davidson writes:
“The report considers the many nuances of marketing mobile money. A key theme of the article is that marketing mobile money is very different from marketing airtime. Indeed, the customer journey for mobile money from unawareness to regular use is long and requires a number of inputs: customers need to not only be informed that the service exists, but also convinced that it could solve a problem in their lives and educated about how it works. We discuss tactics that marketers can employ when customers get stuck along this journey, such as when they have registered but fail to transact, and we have included a diagnostic as a supplement to the article to help operators diagnose and rectify such issues among their potential customer base. The article includes 27 mini-case studies about effective—and some less effective—mobile money marketing tactics, and we are grateful to the many mobile operators and other mobile money providers who agreed to share their experiences with the broader industry.”
The 33-page report (PDF) is available for download.
See full report (PDF): Driving Customer Usage of Mobile Money for the Unbanked
Source: MMU Blog
In countries where access to traditional banking services is limited, more and more people are utilizing mobile phones to send money with services such as M-Pesa, which now boasts more than 13 million subscribers. The technology may be a boon to the health field as well, as the same systems can be used by organizations such as the World Food Program, which uses mobile devices for some of its food aid voucher programs.
The application allows a food vender to enter a person’s voucher code into a mobile phone, and the system automatically reimburses the vendor via mobile payment. The convenience encourages retailers to participate in the food program, and cuts paperwork. The same technology could easily be applied to conditional cash transfer programs, which are health promotion initiatives that offer cash incentives to poor families for getting children vaccinated, or sending them to school.
Read more, via PBS NewsHour.
A new law to regulate mobile banking in Tanzania is in the pipeline as part of efforts by the government to enhance compliance in the business. Since the introduction of the mobile banking services in 2008 in the country there was no proper law to guide and regulate the m-banking despite its tremendous growth and dynamism.
And analysts are questioning the strictness of the existing laws and regulations to prevent any possible illicit activity such as money laundering and terrorism financing that might engulf the mushrooming mobile phone-based transactions. According to a senior Bank of Tanzania official, a national payments system bill is expected to be tabled in Parliament for debate this year. Once enacted, the law would boost mobile commerce while ensuring more security.
The Central Bank of Congo (BCC) has held a workshop on mobile banking services with the aim of making greater use of the technology.
According to the institution, mobile phones will soon play a key role in accessing banking services in Democratic Republic of Congo, as can be seen in other African countries such as Nigeria or Kenya.
You must be logged in to post a comment.