CfC Stanbic Bank expands bulk mobile payments service in East Africa

Speaking at the third EuroFinance Conference on treasury, risk and cash management at a Nairobi hotel, CfC Stanbic Bank's regional head for transactional banking, Robert Masinde said CfC Stanbic Bank's mobile payments solution has been able to address a number of challenges faced by corporate institutions in expending payments to a large number of people, a good number of whom do not have access to banking services.

"Our mobile bulk payment solution, designed for corporate organisations, now makes it easier for such corporations to send money in bulk to their suppliers, employees or other business partners without the beneficiaries necessarily having to own a bank account," Masinde said.

"Mobile banking has greatly improved accessibility to financial services in Kenya from as low as 20% to over 50% in a very short span of time," he explained.

Corporate clients enabled to disburse bulk payments

In the Kenyan market, CfC Stanbic Bank has partnered with mobile telephony service providers to offer a mobile banking service that enables corporate clients to disburse bulk payments such as salaries, dividend payments, per diem allowances and pension payments to various beneficiaries through their mobile phones.

Masinde said the bank was also working with MTN and Vodacom to provide similar services in Uganda and Tanzania.

He noted that the bank had extended the same payment solution to the agricultural sector and is currently working with tea firms, farmers in the various tea growing areas.

The mobile banking service is accessible through more than 20,000 M-PESA payment points, over 4,000 Airtel Money payment points, Pesa Point & Equity Bank ATMs countrywide. It is also accessible in all M-Pesa payment points in Tanzania and through MTN Money in Uganda.