Mobile Transfers – Africa Tech Digest

FNB Launches 2 New Digital Payment Solutions for SMEs

6Oct

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Mobile Transfers

FNB Launches 2 New Digital Payment Solutions for SMEs

FNB South Africa, one of the country’s top lenders, has announced today the launch of two new digital payment solutions for small-to-medium enterprises (SMEs). According to a statement from FNB, the growing need to accelerate the shift from cash to digital and card payments, coupled with the growth of eCommerce across Africa, the bank has expanded its payments ecosystem with two new SME solutions: FNB WebStore and FNB Android Speedpoint device. “The solutions will offer a simple, easy and cost-effective way for businesses in South Africa to accept payments from customers,” says FNB. “Over the last decade the payments industry has seen a dynamic shift – from the internet and smartphones driving the adoption of mobile payments, end of cheques as a form of payment, to the current pa...

4 Reasons Why Contactless Payments Are Taking Over the World

4Oct

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Mobile Transfers

4 Reasons Why Contactless Payments Are Taking Over the World

For the past 10 years, we’ve been hearing about how new-generation mobile apps, wallets, tap-to-pay, NFC solutions and even the humble QR code are going to spell the end of the magnetic stripe card as a means of payment. And here we are, in 2021, and we’re finally taking big steps towards a brave new world of contactless payments. In fact, contactless payments are possibly the hottest trend in the financial services industry right now. Globally, Accenture predicts $7-trillion in consumer spending will shift from cash to cards and digital payments by 2023. The Deloitte Africa Digital Commerce Survey found that 22-million South African consumers shopped online in 2020, growing to 32-million by 2024. https://16319923ff83137830bb4a8a61c91e67.safeframe.googlesyndication.com/safeframe/1-0...

Paga partners with Untapped Global to digitise payments for 120,000 Nigerian SMEs

4Oct

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Mobile Transfers, Nigeria

Paga partners with Untapped Global to digitise payments for 120,000 Nigerian SMEs

Paga, a Nigeria-based mobile payment company, has partnered with investment firm, Untapped Global, to provide financing of point-of-sale (POS) devices for small businesses and merchants in the country. Paga’s POS devices enable merchants to accept cards, mobile payments, and other forms of digital payments, making it easy for them to get paid while enabling them to provide other value-added financial services to customers. The financing, provided via Untapped Global, is structured to lower the overall cost of entry for merchants to acquire handheld POS terminals, with payments recovered from the revenues earned on the devices. After a successful pilot programme, which saw 2,000 merchants provided with financed POS devices earlier this year, both companies have, accord...

Airtel Money users in Kenya to receive funds from 129 countries, free of charge

2Oct

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Mobile Transfers

Airtel Money users in Kenya to receive funds from 129 countries, free of charge

Airtel Money has partnered with WorldRemit to allow Airtel customers to receive money from 129 countries, without a charge. World Remit, which in August rebranded as Zepz after raising $292 million at a $5 billion valuation, is a UK-based cross-border mobile payments firm that enables people to move money across multiple locations. Airtel Money is a Mobile Commerce service powered by Airtel, one of Africa’s largest telecommunication companies, that allows customers to use their mobile number as a digital wallet (e-wallet). Airtel Money e-wallets can be funded and used to make and receive payments. Through this partnership, Airtel Money customers in Kenya will be able to receive money directly into their Airtel Money wallets from 129 countries. In addition to rec...

The Committee of e-Business Heads in Nigeria discuss the Adoption of Digital Currency in Nigeria in Q3 Industry Forum

27Sep

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Mobile Transfers, Nigeria

The Committee of e-Business Heads in Nigeria discuss the Adoption of Digital Currency in Nigeria in Q3 Industry Forum

As the Central Bank of Nigeria sets to launch the E-Naira on October 1st, 2021, the question everyone is asking is; are we ready for this bold move? Nigeria will be the 1st SubSaharan African country to adopt the use of digital currency and there have been concerns about the technology and its adoption. The Committee of E-Banking Industry Heads (Cebih) in its 3rd Quarter Industry Forum discussed the digital currency’s adoption with the theme “Digital Currency and the Prospects of Central Bank Digital Currency in Nigeria”, held in Abuja on Wednesday 22 September 2021. Varying concerns such as the technology, adoption, financial inclusion, the impact on forex, and the value of the CBDC were discussed. Continue reading Image: Techcabal

Nigerian businesses can now accept Apple Pay on Paystack

23Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

ecommerce, Mobile Transfers, Nigeria

Nigerian businesses can now accept Apple Pay on Paystack

Paystack, the African fintech company that powers and processes payments for businesses, today announced that it is launching Pay with Apple Pay on its platform. The company, in a statement, called the integration “the fastest, secure way for Nigerian businesses to accept international payments.” Apple Pay, Apple’s mobile payments and digital wallet service, provides users with a secure and private way to pay on their iPhones, iPads, Apple Watches and Macbooks. Despite having a presence in almost every continent since 2014, Apple Pay only made its way into Africa this March through South Africa. Users in the country with Visa, Mastercard and American Express cards can access the payment service from five banks — Nedbank, Absa, FirstRand Bank, Investec and Discovery. Continue read...

Government Cuts Mobile Money Transaction Charges by 30pc

2Sep

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

Mobile, Mobile Transfers

Government Cuts Mobile Money Transaction Charges by 30pc

The statement added that newly reduced rates will be officially announced in the Government Gazette today TEL AVIV, Israel, September 1, 2021/APO Group/ -- Tanzania's Government has reduced mobile money transaction levy by 30 percent. A press statement issued by the Ministry of Finance and Planning Tuesday stated that Minister Mwigulu Nchemba has already signed the review of the charges. Also, the Government held a meeting with mobile service providers, who have unanimously agreed to cut down mobile money interoperability rates by 10 percent Following concerns and views from the public, claiming that the deductions were too high, President Samia Suluhu Hassan directed two Ministers (Finance and Planning Minister and Minister for Communications and Information Technology) to si...

MTN launches Africa’s first AI service for Mobile Money

9Jun

By Africa Tech DigestNo Comments

AI, Mobile Transfers

MTN launches Africa’s first AI service for Mobile Money

MTN Group is proud to announce the launch of Africa’s first Mobile Money (MoMo) artificial intelligence service or “chatbot”. The chatbot went live in Ivory Coast in May and will be rolled out across MTN’s MoMo footprint in the next few months. The artificial intelligence mobile money “assistant” enables customers to engage with MTN’s MoMo services, including payments, on various social media platforms such as WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger, and via SMS. The service will also be included over time, in MTN’s own newly released advanced instant messaging service “Ayoba”. The chatbot is an artificial intelligence guide that assists users to navigate MTN’s MoMo services and provide other useful information. This innovation leverages messaging and artificial intelligence to drive customer ...