Mobile commerce service 'Flous' expands to Benin

Flous, which means "money" and is known as Flooz in Benin, enables customers who sign up to use their mobile phones like digital wallets to pay for goods and services, transfer money to the friends and family members, withdraw and deposit cash, top up mobile phones and manage bank accounts.

"As Flous comes online throughout our international operations millions of our customers can benefit from world-class financial services - many for the first time," said Khalifa Al Shamsi, chief digital services officer at Etisalat Group. "By bringing banking to the unbanked, we are investing in communities and giving them the tools to flourish and thrive.

Designed to be secure and flexible

This is especially relevant for Benin as the market for financial services has yet to fully mature. So it will be exciting to see the impact on society when this innovative new product takes off."

Customers can also use their mobile phones as debit cards and manage funds directly from their handsets. The service, offered in partnership with "Banque Atlantique du Bénin", is designed to be secure and flexible - requiring a password for each transaction - and gives customers instant access to money 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Service can be accessed on even the most basic mobile handset.

"By launching Flous, we are delighted to offer the unbanked in Benin a fundamental tool for economic and social development," said Ben Cheick Haidara, the managing director of Etisalat Benin. "All of our customers throughout the country will benefit tremendously as the service is rolled out."