Another key milestone has been achieved in the banking and telecommunications industries as Africell and Eco-Bank launch a new business partnership. The new business relationship will bring banking to the door-steps of customers. Africell is one of Sierra Leone’s leading telecommunications company while Eco-Bank is one those making impressive inroads in the banking industry.
The new partnership was launched in Freetown yesterday thus creating an ideal platform for the two institutions to meet the digital aspirations of a wide customer base. The new service comes at a time many customers no longer want to be in queues and do banking as usual.
The new service has solved the problem as they can now stay in the comfort of their homes and access financial services any time. It is a new form of reliable payment system that enhances the financial inclusion principle. No one will be left behind in the country’s financial system including low income earners under the inclusion principle.
The two institutions are tapping the benefits of Information and communication technologies to make banking easy for the people of Sierra Leone. The strapline for the new partnership: ‘Push and Pull your money between your Afrimoney wallet and Eco-bank Account’ denotes a business of convenience.
It would ensure that Africell and Eco-Bank customers transfer and receive money without queuing. The steps one could use to benefit from the partnership were explained by Marcus Berdie, an Africell staff. The first requirement, Berdie said, that could qualify one to be part of the scheme is to be a customer of Eco-Bank and Africell.
“One becomes a customer of Eco-Bank by opening and operating an account at the bank while one becomes a customer of Africell by purchasing an Africell sim card,” Berdie told journalists. With an Africell sim card, he went on, one could register with Afrimoney which could be done either by oneself or an Afrimoney official or agent.
He said once one is registered with the scheme, they could access various services including purchase of EDSA (Electricity Distribution and Supply Authority) top-up. “One can dial *161# in your mobile phone which can take you to several options that you can follow to be part of the scheme,” Berdie pointed out.
During the launching, Africell was represented by Afrimoney director, Martison Obeng Agyei while the managing director for Eco-Bank, Aina Moore stood in for her institution. Both officials made statements during the ceremony. The Afrimoney director, Agyei made it clear that under the new partnership between the two institutions, a customer could move money away from bank to wallet and from wallet to bank.
“We bring digitalisation to do the things that are necessary, and we must embrace it,” Agyei urged actual and potential customers. With the introduction of the digital scheme, Agyei hopes that business for the two institutions would flourish for the benefits of the customers in Sierra Leone.
Agyei who himself is a member of the new scheme told the public that they sell what they have tasted in one of the most used screens, mobile phones. Customers’ interest, he said, was their priority, and called on those who are not yet members to join the scheme and enjoy the benefits the goodies the new partnership would bring. Joy awaits those who subscribe to the new business scheme.
In her address during the ceremony, Eco-Bank managing director, Mrs Moore expressed hope that the scheme would grow once launched. The launching, she said, marked the achievement of a new milestone in a digital era. “We have always wanted to reach the last mile,” Mrs More expressed her business ambition.
The managing director also touched on the importance of digitalisation saying that “we don’t have a choice; nothing goes on for now without digitalisation.” “A company or business organisation could go extinct if it does not digitalise. You either change or die,” she emphasised.
Industries in modern societies could stay only if they were fully digitalised adding that such partnerships are formed for businesses to survive especially banks. “With Afrimoney Service, convenience is here,” she reiterated.
The managing director remains highly confident that customers would benefit from the new scheme. The new partnership would operate not only locally but also internationally since money could be moved across Africa.
Money could be transferred from Sierra Leone to other countries. Launching of the new partnership by head of public relations at Africell, Joe Abass Bangura and Mrs Moore was the high point of the ceremony.