As part of strategy to boost the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) financial inclusion policy, the apex bank yesterday gave approval to Globacom, Nigeria’s second national operator, to create 500,000 mobile money agent outlets in the country through the Glo Xchange, a mobile money agent network which was launched yesterday in Lagos in partnership with commercial banks.
Globacom in partnership with Firstmonie, a subsidiary of First Bank, Ecobank, Stanbic IBTC and Zenith Bank unveiled the first super agent network to drive mobile money which has lagged since it was introduced in the country in 2011 by the apex bank. Continue
The director, payment systems, CBN, Mr Dipo Fatokun, said the launch of the mobile money agent network by the telecommunications operator supports the financial inclusion programme of the apex bank aimed at creating a cashless economy where every unbanked Nigerian could have access to financial services irrespective of the location, literacy or financial capability.
He said the “CBN believes that mobile money and agent framework is the frontier of cashless boom.
Mobile money is the next thing expected to transform the CBN’s cash-less policy, the apex bank believe that such initiative like this will aid both telecommunications and banking industries to further serve Nigerians better.”
Reeling out statistics on the cashless initiative so far, Fatokun said Nigeria increased its ATM machines from 10,727 in June 2012 to 15, 000 by June 2014 with the transaction volumes also moving from N1.3 trillion as at June 2012 to N1.7 trillion as at June 2014. Point of Sales (PoS) terminals has as well increased from 21, 400 in 2012 to 135, 000 at as June 2014.
The transaction volume on the PoS has moved from N57.3 billion in 2012 to N138 billion by June this year.
Head of Glo, Prepaid Services, Kamal Shonibare said the government through the CBN canvassed cash-less revolution through relationship between banks and the telecommunications operators. He said mobile operators are to create platforms that will drive and make the process a success.
According to him, majority of the about 170 million Nigerians have no access to financial services.
No comments:
Post a Comment