Volume 1 | Issue II

November 2009

Post Office Networks andMobile Money

Piet Biemans - CEO, BOFIB BV

InterviewsBenjamin Lyon - FrontlineSMS : CreditJohn Owens - Mabs PhilipinesPatrick Ngabonziza Gordon - MobicashHannes van Rensburg - Fundamo

www.shakamobile.com

Welcome to Mobile Money Africa, The continent's leading portal for Mobile Financial Inclusion with News, contributions, events and interviews from leading players across Africa and beyond. The Mobile channel is the next frontier for an all inclusive financial systems for Africans in coming years.We welcome al l stakeholders on board: Telecommunications, Financial Institutions, Micro Finance Institutions, regulators and independent service providers in Africa and Beyond.

Emmanuel Okoegwale, Editor.Emmanuel@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Welcome Note

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Amaka Agbakoba Ofume, Former Senior World Bank Consultant.

Meneske Gencer, Director - Mpayconnect, Inc.

Aiaze Mitha, Director - Amarante Consulting LLc.

Events and MarketingWest Ehkahtorkwest@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Business Development, sales and AdvertsEaster ArekamehAeaster@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Creative ConsultantChike OrjiSOFTEPEN08062186706

Web ConsultantMark OppenneerEthnos projectUSA

Advisory Board

Mobile Money Africa Directory Update

Accells. Affinity Global service.Aikku.AitecAfrica .AmaranteConsulting. Amazon.Anam.Atom.Boku.Celpay.CitadelAdvantage.Clairmail.Comviva.Devifi.E-Fulusi.EdgarDunn.EserveGlobal.EstelTechnologies.FronlineSMS:Credit.Fundamo.GenesisAnalytics.Globa.Google.HyperWallet.IDTEurope.inswitch.iPaystation.Isys.Kabira.Luup.Macalla.Manamtech.Margento.mChek.Mcom.mFoundry.Mi-Pay .MicroSave.MobiCash.Mobile-Financial.Mobile Suica.MobileMoneyCanada.MobiPay.Monitise.mPayconnect.MTN Mobile Money.Mukuru.Nokia.Osaifu –Keitai.Paradigm Solutions & Consulting.Paymate.PayPal Mobile. PesaPal.PINWise.POFIB.Mpesa.ShakaMobile.SwapMobile.Sybase365.TagAttitude.Tagsme.Tranglo.TransferTO.Trivnet.TxtnPay.Ukash.Utiba.Valimo.Vipera.VIVOTECH.VoiceCash.Western Union.Wizzit.Zain Zap.Zenith Bank.Zong.Zpesa.

Thank you for making Mobile Money Africa – Number one in Africa.

Join us as a founding member and organization as Mobile Money moves to the next level of Continent wide industry association (In –Formation) Send an email to Kwest@mobilemoneyAfrica.com to know more

Look out for the next issue which focuses on mobile payment technologies

Send us news, events, technology roll - outs, advertorials and special features for the December editionCheers

MobileMoneyAfrica is published monthly by GO MOBILE NIG 4b

Adekunle Kuye street, Surulere, Lagos - Nigeria. All materials in

this publication are covered by copyright. The inclusion or

exclusion of any does not mean that the publisher advocates or

rejects its use. No part of this publication may be reproduced or

transmitted in any form- electronically, mechanically,

photocopying or otherwise in whole or in part without written

permission of the publisher. All correspondence is assumed to be

intended for publication unless clearly stated otherwise.

009 - 234- 1-2212869

009-234-803-08-18868

Emmanuel Okoegwale, Editor.

Avijit Nanda, President - Timesofmoney India

Graham Orodje, CEO - TaurusMobile Follow us on

Jeppe Ramlau - Hansen, - VP - Clickatell

Welcome to Mobile Money Africa, The continent's leading portal for Mobile Financial Inclusion with News, contributions, events and interviews from leading players across Africa and beyond. The Mobile channel is the next frontier for an all inclusive financial systems for Africans in coming years.We welcome al l stakeholders on board: Telecommunications, Financial Institutions, Micro Finance Institutions, regulators and independent service providers in Africa and Beyond.

Emmanuel Okoegwale, Editor.Emmanuel@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Welcome Note

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Amaka Agbakoba Ofume, Former Senior World Bank Consultant.

Meneske Gencer, Director - Mpayconnect, Inc.

Aiaze Mitha, Director - Amarante Consulting LLc.

Events and MarketingWest Ehkahtorkwest@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Business Development, sales and AdvertsEaster ArekamehAeaster@mobilemoneyafrica.com

Creative ConsultantChike OrjiSOFTEPEN08062186706

Web ConsultantMark OppenneerEthnos projectUSA

Advisory Board

Mobile Money Africa Directory Update

Accells. Affinity Global service.Aikku.AitecAfrica .AmaranteConsulting. Amazon.Anam.Atom.Boku.Celpay.CitadelAdvantage.Clairmail.Comviva.Devifi.E-Fulusi.EdgarDunn.EserveGlobal.EstelTechnologies.FronlineSMS:Credit.Fundamo.GenesisAnalytics.Globa.Google.HyperWallet.IDTEurope.inswitch.iPaystation.Isys.Kabira.Luup.Macalla.Manamtech.Margento.mChek.Mcom.mFoundry.Mi-Pay .MicroSave.MobiCash.Mobile-Financial.Mobile Suica.MobileMoneyCanada.MobiPay.Monitise.mPayconnect.MTN Mobile Money.Mukuru.Nokia.Osaifu –Keitai.Paradigm Solutions & Consulting.Paymate.PayPal Mobile. PesaPal.PINWise.POFIB.Mpesa.ShakaMobile.SwapMobile.Sybase365.TagAttitude.Tagsme.Tranglo.TransferTO.Trivnet.TxtnPay.Ukash.Utiba.Valimo.Vipera.VIVOTECH.VoiceCash.Western Union.Wizzit.Zain Zap.Zenith Bank.Zong.Zpesa.

Thank you for making Mobile Money Africa – Number one in Africa.

Join us as a founding member and organization as Mobile Money moves to the next level of Continent wide industry association (In –Formation) Send an email to Kwest@mobilemoneyAfrica.com to know more

Look out for the next issue which focuses on mobile payment technologies

Send us news, events, technology roll - outs, advertorials and special features for the December editionCheers

MobileMoneyAfrica is published monthly by GO MOBILE NIG 4b

Adekunle Kuye street, Surulere, Lagos - Nigeria. All materials in

this publication are covered by copyright. The inclusion or

exclusion of any does not mean that the publisher advocates or

rejects its use. No part of this publication may be reproduced or

transmitted in any form- electronically, mechanically,

photocopying or otherwise in whole or in part without written

permission of the publisher. All correspondence is assumed to be

intended for publication unless clearly stated otherwise.

009 - 234- 1-2212869

009-234-803-08-18868

Emmanuel Okoegwale, Editor.

Avijit Nanda, President - Timesofmoney India

Graham Orodje, CEO - TaurusMobile Follow us on

Jeppe Ramlau - Hansen, - VP - Clickatell

November 2009 | 4www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

INBOXAdvisory Board Membership

Thank you for your wonderful Job with the E-Mag but I have issues with the composition of the MMA board which is not reflective of African representation. Are you saying Africans do not have expertise in this field? I disagree strongly.

Bouaka Edwin.Achimota - Accra

MMA:Thanks for your comments. The board is still in its infancy and two of our principal members are actually Nigerians. Amaka Ofume and Graham Orodje. We are still actively seeking for experts in this field.

Western Union Interview:

According to your interview with the VP, Western Union, the firm is planning to launch into Mobile remittances like the Banks or mobile operators. Are they going to be holding money deposits like the Banks too?

Thomas Anderson.Amsterdam – Holland.

I had been wondering for so long why I am not able to send money across countries in west Africa using Western Union. Your interview is enlightening and I hope that the governments will address the regulatory issues raised by Mr Fellahi of Western Union.

CreditSMS.

The dream to launch Micro Finance using SMS is quite laudable and I Had visited the site but no list of countries in Africa where it will be operational.

Andrew Pouka.Monrovia - Liberia.

CreditSMS claim that sms works on all mobile phone cannot be right. Many CDMA do not offer SMS and I wonder how those class of subscribers will use your application.

Ahmed AbiodunGarki – AbujaFCTNigeria

MMAYou may reach CreditSMS via email to clarify the proposed countries of operations at info@creditsms.org.

Sending Love HomeYour write up on how Africans send money is very educative and useful, however, you quoted the dollar currency for passport issuance cost in Nigeria. Nigerian uses Naira and not the dollar.

Awe Babafemi.Lagos – Nigeria

The chart used in the article was credited to Gamos.It is actually Gamos uk.Please make necessary corrections.

Thomas KenOxford.

MMA.

Thank you for observation. The Magazine is for global audience and the use of dollar is deliberate. Thank you.

November 2009 | 4www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

INBOXAdvisory Board Membership

Thank you for your wonderful Job with the E-Mag but I have issues with the composition of the MMA board which is not reflective of African representation. Are you saying Africans do not have expertise in this field? I disagree strongly.

Bouaka Edwin.Achimota - Accra

MMA:Thanks for your comments. The board is still in its infancy and two of our principal members are actually Nigerians. Amaka Ofume and Graham Orodje. We are still actively seeking for experts in this field.

Western Union Interview:

According to your interview with the VP, Western Union, the firm is planning to launch into Mobile remittances like the Banks or mobile operators. Are they going to be holding money deposits like the Banks too?

Thomas Anderson.Amsterdam – Holland.

I had been wondering for so long why I am not able to send money across countries in west Africa using Western Union. Your interview is enlightening and I hope that the governments will address the regulatory issues raised by Mr Fellahi of Western Union.

CreditSMS.

The dream to launch Micro Finance using SMS is quite laudable and I Had visited the site but no list of countries in Africa where it will be operational.

Andrew Pouka.Monrovia - Liberia.

CreditSMS claim that sms works on all mobile phone cannot be right. Many CDMA do not offer SMS and I wonder how those class of subscribers will use your application.

Ahmed AbiodunGarki – AbujaFCTNigeria

MMAYou may reach CreditSMS via email to clarify the proposed countries of operations at info@creditsms.org.

Sending Love HomeYour write up on how Africans send money is very educative and useful, however, you quoted the dollar currency for passport issuance cost in Nigeria. Nigerian uses Naira and not the dollar.

Awe Babafemi.Lagos – Nigeria

The chart used in the article was credited to Gamos.It is actually Gamos uk.Please make necessary corrections.

Thomas KenOxford.

MMA.

Thank you for observation. The Magazine is for global audience and the use of dollar is deliberate. Thank you.

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com November 2009 | 6

EditorEmmanuel Okoegwale,

Mina, a Ghanaian Lady that I met on my recent trip from Accra, the capital city of Ghana to Aflao, the border town with

Republic of Togo, was travelling to conduct withdrawal transactions with her ATM card and nine other cards belonging to friends. The distance to Aflao from her rustic roadside village is close to 45 kilometers and return trip will consume three hours of her productive time as a school teacher. She said 'I do this every week and also help my friends but I don't know if I can continue this way. She continued 'If by the end of the year, no Bank stations an ATM in her locality or open a Branch, I will resort to keeping my money under my pillow. At least I don't incur charges to make withdrawals from under my bed'. That is the typical scenario across Africa's rural population. She might end up adding to the statistics of the previously banked by the year end.

In Africa, in bid to turn in massive profits and assume a continental Player status, Banks are focused on the Big picture:Africa, while neglecting their backyards where credible statistics has shown that 70% percent of the citizens live in the rural and semi Urban areas. The Banks are engaged in a Grand prix like race to breast the tape into many African countries.

With the ear bursting sermons of Banking the unbanked in Africa and yet the attitude of the Banks are a direct opposite, it seems to be fashionable to sing the song but never dancing to it. While some Large Rural local governments in some parts of Nigeria are without a Bank branch, a high street in Lagos of 1.8 kilometer stretch has 8 branches of a particular Bank which translates into a bank branch for every 180 meters. These are same Banks with aggressive African roll outs, exporting same disconnections.

Governments in her wisdom, thought Micro Finance Institutions will bridge the gap but they too fell into the large commercial Banks trap by modeling their services to be exact or look alike. They issue same standard KYC forms and

conditions like the large commercial Bank ( LCB) to a different type of customer .Some even went further to style their offices to look imposing and as intimidating and located in the major cities like the LCB, far away from their potential and targeted market. Rather than close the gap, the MFI's by design are widening it.

For the unbanked African, with few options for formal financial inclusion, out of sight is out of mind. They continue to patronize the informal channel which is unreliable and unsafe. While promoting this imbalances, the LCB are slow to take on innovations that can significantly change this pattern and are quick to muscle in any perceived incursions into what they think will be their bread and butter forever, the unbanked populations.

The games changers are here. Regulations across the world is changing and favoring the entities that can make it happen. In Kenya, while the Banks are still importing security doors and window blinds to set up 'profit centres' Bank Branches, Safaricom through Mpesa is busy signing up agents.While the telcos are promoting a Bank in your pocket strategy, The Banks are busy pushing the crowds through their doors. Last update on banking statistics in Nigeria, shows there are 22,000 people to a Bank Branch.

With the new thinking amongst African Financial and telecommunications regulators, the bridge is closing on the Financial institutions that are not ready to use what the Left Behinds already have, the Mobile Phone. Little snippets from the Bank / Telcos, war front capital – Kenya, The Crying Babies are the Banks and the winner is Mpesa with Seven million subscribers .Will the likes of FrontlineSMS:Credit, MTN Mobile Money, Wizzit in South Africa, Txtpay in Ghana,Mi-pay in sierra leaone and Tagattitude in Nigeria, be able to replicate the Mpesa challenge? Only time will tell but for sure, the game changers are here.

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com November 2009 | 6

EditorEmmanuel Okoegwale,

Mina, a Ghanaian Lady that I met on my recent trip from Accra, the capital city of Ghana to Aflao, the border town with

Republic of Togo, was travelling to conduct withdrawal transactions with her ATM card and nine other cards belonging to friends. The distance to Aflao from her rustic roadside village is close to 45 kilometers and return trip will consume three hours of her productive time as a school teacher. She said 'I do this every week and also help my friends but I don't know if I can continue this way. She continued 'If by the end of the year, no Bank stations an ATM in her locality or open a Branch, I will resort to keeping my money under my pillow. At least I don't incur charges to make withdrawals from under my bed'. That is the typical scenario across Africa's rural population. She might end up adding to the statistics of the previously banked by the year end.

In Africa, in bid to turn in massive profits and assume a continental Player status, Banks are focused on the Big picture:Africa, while neglecting their backyards where credible statistics has shown that 70% percent of the citizens live in the rural and semi Urban areas. The Banks are engaged in a Grand prix like race to breast the tape into many African countries.

With the ear bursting sermons of Banking the unbanked in Africa and yet the attitude of the Banks are a direct opposite, it seems to be fashionable to sing the song but never dancing to it. While some Large Rural local governments in some parts of Nigeria are without a Bank branch, a high street in Lagos of 1.8 kilometer stretch has 8 branches of a particular Bank which translates into a bank branch for every 180 meters. These are same Banks with aggressive African roll outs, exporting same disconnections.

Governments in her wisdom, thought Micro Finance Institutions will bridge the gap but they too fell into the large commercial Banks trap by modeling their services to be exact or look alike. They issue same standard KYC forms and

conditions like the large commercial Bank ( LCB) to a different type of customer .Some even went further to style their offices to look imposing and as intimidating and located in the major cities like the LCB, far away from their potential and targeted market. Rather than close the gap, the MFI's by design are widening it.

For the unbanked African, with few options for formal financial inclusion, out of sight is out of mind. They continue to patronize the informal channel which is unreliable and unsafe. While promoting this imbalances, the LCB are slow to take on innovations that can significantly change this pattern and are quick to muscle in any perceived incursions into what they think will be their bread and butter forever, the unbanked populations.

The games changers are here. Regulations across the world is changing and favoring the entities that can make it happen. In Kenya, while the Banks are still importing security doors and window blinds to set up 'profit centres' Bank Branches, Safaricom through Mpesa is busy signing up agents.While the telcos are promoting a Bank in your pocket strategy, The Banks are busy pushing the crowds through their doors. Last update on banking statistics in Nigeria, shows there are 22,000 people to a Bank Branch.

With the new thinking amongst African Financial and telecommunications regulators, the bridge is closing on the Financial institutions that are not ready to use what the Left Behinds already have, the Mobile Phone. Little snippets from the Bank / Telcos, war front capital – Kenya, The Crying Babies are the Banks and the winner is Mpesa with Seven million subscribers .Will the likes of FrontlineSMS:Credit, MTN Mobile Money, Wizzit in South Africa, Txtpay in Ghana,Mi-pay in sierra leaone and Tagattitude in Nigeria, be able to replicate the Mpesa challenge? Only time will tell but for sure, the game changers are here.

NOVEMBER 2009 | 9www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

05 November, Johannesburg, South Africa - FNB eMoney Product House CEO, Yolande van Wyk today announced the launch of Send Money - an instant solution for FNB customers to transfer money to anyone with a South African cellphone.

According to FinScope, 3.8 million people send money to family and friends living within South Africa annually. Most family members to whom money is sent receives it in cash. Now FNB customers can send money instantly to anyone who has a South African cellphone. The receiver does not need to have a bank card or a bank account to access the money sent to them, they simply withdraw their money from one of the 4,300 FNB ATMs across the country.

FNB's Send Money offers money-senders an instant and secure money transfer service, as well as offering receivers various electronic transaction options, says van Wyk. The receiver gets an automated SMS telling them how much money has been sent and instructing them how to get the money. The receiver can then request a temporary ATM PIN to withdraw the money at service FNB ATMs without the need of a bank card.

Prior to the launch of Send Money, we conducted research on the challenges being faced by consumers when sending money. Some of the concerns were about whether the money would get to its destination,how long it would take to get there and the costs associated with sending money, says van Wyk.

These concerns derive from the fact that money sent is for basic needs such as food and groceries.

FNB customers can send money instantly, at any time of the day or even at night, without having to wait for the branches to open the next day. We are providing our customers with a secure way to send money to loved ones when they need it. It is also simple to use,? says van Wyk.

There are no bank charges to withdraw at ATMs so receivers will get all of the money sent to them. Withdrawals can be made in full, or receivers may choose to withdraw part of the money and keep the rest in a Wallet for future use.

In addition, receivers will have access to other services with the money in the Wallet. They can buy prepaid airtime for themselves or

someone else, send money on to someone else, check their balances and shop online using Cell Pay Point, a service that allows the receiver to pay for online shopping using their cellphone. FNB has put in place a number of consumer education

initiatives to ensure a better understanding of the sending and receiving process.

Part of the attraction to the payment service is that it makes use of the cellphone. This device, which is being used by millions of South

Africans, is closing the distance between sender and receiver. Through the use of the cellphone we are bringing innovative payment services to consumers from all walks of life.

With Send Money and other innovations from FNB, we are committing to bridging the gap between the banked and unbanked. Through the use of innovative technologies we believe that we`ll be able to significantly change the way people manage their money, says Len Pienaar, FNB mCommerce CEO. To access their money, the receiver will need to dial *120*277# from their cellphone and follow the instructions on the easy-to-use menu.

Receivers who do not have air time to request their temporary ATM PIN can make use of a free number *130*277# which, when dialed from their cellphone, will enable them to buy air time with the money received.

From 22 November 2009 until 15 May 2010 there will be no charges to send money, and receivers will be able to check their balances and send money on to someone else free of charges.

For more information contact:

Ntokozo Ndlovu

Vuma Reputaiton Management

Contact: + 27 (0) 82 501 3811

Email: ntokozo@vumacom.co.za

Steve Higgins

FNB Corporate Communications

Contact: +27 (0) 11 371 7854

Email: shiggins@fnb.co.za

NOVEMBER 2009 | 8www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Len Pienaar,CEO,FNB mCommerce

he use of informal mechanisms has for a long time been the traditional means of remitting Tmoney from one family member to the other

in Africa. Generally, the sender would have to travel to a bus/ taxi rank to give a driver the money, along with the physical address and name of the receiver. Although trends have changed, there are still a lot of people in Africa that do not have bank accounts.

The receiver would have to wait, in some instances days, for the bus or taxi to deliver the money to them.

To ensure the money safely reaches the receiver, the sender would get charged a certain fee, depending on the amount sent. In most instances the system worked, but what does this do for the development of African communities asks Yolande van Wyk, CEO of FNB eMoney Product House, South Africa.

The need to assist communities to develop access to banking, financial services and remittance instruments has seemingly become a matter of urgency.

“Access barriers to banking have traditionally been caused by the high cost of banking together with the lack of banking facilities in remote areas, trust and concerns around the ease of use of banking services,” says van Wyk.

With innovative banking technologies, banking has become simpler, convenient, cheaper and more accessible to people from all walks of life.

“FNB`s Send Money is one of many innovations by FNB mCommerce aimed at bridging the gap between the banked and unbanked,” says van Wyk. “It allows FNB South Africa's banking customers to send money to their families and friends. The receiver does not need to have a bank card or a bank account to access the money sent to them, they simply withdraw their money from one of

the 4,300 FNB ATMs across South Africa.”

The Sender sends money to the receiver`s cellphone number. The receiver gets an automated SMS telling them how much money has been sent and instructing them how to get their money. The receiver will need to dial a number from their cellphone and follow the instructions on the easy to use menu. The receiver can then request a temporary ATM PIN to withdraw the money from the ATM, without the need of a bank card or bank account.

“The service addresses a number of access barriers to banking. It`s affordable, transactions are performed in real-time, it`s convenient and accessible to any receiver with a cellphone – which millions of people in Africa are already using,” says van Wyk.

“Banking strategies that reach out to the entire community will eventually lead to the unbanked having greater access to financial services,” says van Wyk.

“With Send Money and other innovations from FNB, we are committing to bridging the gap in our communities. Through the use of innovative technologies we believe that we`ll be able to significantly change the way people manage their money,” says van Wyk.

FNB`s Send Money is currently active in South Africa. The bank is looking at expanding the service across borders to other African countries where the bank has a presence. This includes Botswana, Zambia, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland.

NOVEMBER 2009 | 9www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

05 November, Johannesburg, South Africa - FNB eMoney Product House CEO, Yolande van Wyk today announced the launch of Send Money - an instant solution for FNB customers to transfer money to anyone with a South African cellphone.

According to FinScope, 3.8 million people send money to family and friends living within South Africa annually. Most family members to whom money is sent receives it in cash. Now FNB customers can send money instantly to anyone who has a South African cellphone. The receiver does not need to have a bank card or a bank account to access the money sent to them, they simply withdraw their money from one of the 4,300 FNB ATMs across the country.

FNB's Send Money offers money-senders an instant and secure money transfer service, as well as offering receivers various electronic transaction options, says van Wyk. The receiver gets an automated SMS telling them how much money has been sent and instructing them how to get the money. The receiver can then request a temporary ATM PIN to withdraw the money at service FNB ATMs without the need of a bank card.

Prior to the launch of Send Money, we conducted research on the challenges being faced by consumers when sending money. Some of the concerns were about whether the money would get to its destination,how long it would take to get there and the costs associated with sending money, says van Wyk.

These concerns derive from the fact that money sent is for basic needs such as food and groceries.

FNB customers can send money instantly, at any time of the day or even at night, without having to wait for the branches to open the next day. We are providing our customers with a secure way to send money to loved ones when they need it. It is also simple to use,? says van Wyk.

There are no bank charges to withdraw at ATMs so receivers will get all of the money sent to them. Withdrawals can be made in full, or receivers may choose to withdraw part of the money and keep the rest in a Wallet for future use.

In addition, receivers will have access to other services with the money in the Wallet. They can buy prepaid airtime for themselves or

someone else, send money on to someone else, check their balances and shop online using Cell Pay Point, a service that allows the receiver to pay for online shopping using their cellphone. FNB has put in place a number of consumer education

initiatives to ensure a better understanding of the sending and receiving process.

Part of the attraction to the payment service is that it makes use of the cellphone. This device, which is being used by millions of South

Africans, is closing the distance between sender and receiver. Through the use of the cellphone we are bringing innovative payment services to consumers from all walks of life.

With Send Money and other innovations from FNB, we are committing to bridging the gap between the banked and unbanked. Through the use of innovative technologies we believe that we`ll be able to significantly change the way people manage their money, says Len Pienaar, FNB mCommerce CEO. To access their money, the receiver will need to dial *120*277# from their cellphone and follow the instructions on the easy-to-use menu.

Receivers who do not have air time to request their temporary ATM PIN can make use of a free number *130*277# which, when dialed from their cellphone, will enable them to buy air time with the money received.

From 22 November 2009 until 15 May 2010 there will be no charges to send money, and receivers will be able to check their balances and send money on to someone else free of charges.

For more information contact:

Ntokozo Ndlovu

Vuma Reputaiton Management

Contact: + 27 (0) 82 501 3811

Email: ntokozo@vumacom.co.za

Steve Higgins

FNB Corporate Communications

Contact: +27 (0) 11 371 7854

Email: shiggins@fnb.co.za

NOVEMBER 2009 | 8www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Len Pienaar,CEO,FNB mCommerce

he use of informal mechanisms has for a long time been the traditional means of remitting Tmoney from one family member to the other

in Africa. Generally, the sender would have to travel to a bus/ taxi rank to give a driver the money, along with the physical address and name of the receiver. Although trends have changed, there are still a lot of people in Africa that do not have bank accounts.

The receiver would have to wait, in some instances days, for the bus or taxi to deliver the money to them.

To ensure the money safely reaches the receiver, the sender would get charged a certain fee, depending on the amount sent. In most instances the system worked, but what does this do for the development of African communities asks Yolande van Wyk, CEO of FNB eMoney Product House, South Africa.

The need to assist communities to develop access to banking, financial services and remittance instruments has seemingly become a matter of urgency.

“Access barriers to banking have traditionally been caused by the high cost of banking together with the lack of banking facilities in remote areas, trust and concerns around the ease of use of banking services,” says van Wyk.

With innovative banking technologies, banking has become simpler, convenient, cheaper and more accessible to people from all walks of life.

“FNB`s Send Money is one of many innovations by FNB mCommerce aimed at bridging the gap between the banked and unbanked,” says van Wyk. “It allows FNB South Africa's banking customers to send money to their families and friends. The receiver does not need to have a bank card or a bank account to access the money sent to them, they simply withdraw their money from one of

the 4,300 FNB ATMs across South Africa.”

The Sender sends money to the receiver`s cellphone number. The receiver gets an automated SMS telling them how much money has been sent and instructing them how to get their money. The receiver will need to dial a number from their cellphone and follow the instructions on the easy to use menu. The receiver can then request a temporary ATM PIN to withdraw the money from the ATM, without the need of a bank card or bank account.

“The service addresses a number of access barriers to banking. It`s affordable, transactions are performed in real-time, it`s convenient and accessible to any receiver with a cellphone – which millions of people in Africa are already using,” says van Wyk.

“Banking strategies that reach out to the entire community will eventually lead to the unbanked having greater access to financial services,” says van Wyk.

“With Send Money and other innovations from FNB, we are committing to bridging the gap in our communities. Through the use of innovative technologies we believe that we`ll be able to significantly change the way people manage their money,” says van Wyk.

FNB`s Send Money is currently active in South Africa. The bank is looking at expanding the service across borders to other African countries where the bank has a presence. This includes Botswana, Zambia, Lesotho, Namibia and Swaziland.

NOVEMBER 2009 | 11www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Zain Kenya has signed a partnership agreement with Postal Corporation that will enable its customers to register for the company's ZAP services through postal outlets.

Speaking at the launch the postmaster, retired major general Hussein Ali said that the partnership agreement designate postal corporation as an agent for the ZAP branch where they will accept cash deposits and make payments on behalf of ZAIN Kenya money transfer service customers.

"Under this agency, Postal Corporation will on behalf of Zain Kenya undertake the registration of new zap brand service at various postal outlets and a commission of sh50 per customer," he said.

He went on to say that the corporation will facilitate cash-in and cash-out transaction where it will earn a commission of sh10 and sh15 per transaction.

Zain Kenya Managing Director Rene Meza said that using the ZAP services customers can now deposit or withdraw money from their accounts through Posta offices.

"Customers can now access zap cash transfer services in at least 14 outlets in Nairobi and 800 postal offices countrywide before the end of November" Meza said adding that the corporations strong presence especially in the rural and peri-urban areas was a wise move.

Meza said that more than Sh1 billion has been transferred through the ZAP service since it was launched early this year adding that they were in talks with other financial institutions to increase the penetration of the service in the rural areas.

“Posta outlets will augment the existing 3,000 agents countrywide, a move that is expected to deepen the penetration of the eight month old mobile commerce service.

ZAP customers can now sign for the Zain services by sending an SMS with word zap to 455 after which they will be provided with a vital bank account.

The account will enable them use their mobile phones in as much the same way as debit cards.

RIYADH — Eight Western Union centers in Riyadh have been shut after the money transfer services provider terminated its contract with a local partner, threatening jobs.

Director of Corporate Communications Elena Shalneva confirmed the company had closed the so-called agent locations after cutting ties with Mohammed A. Al-Fanih and Partners for Exchange.

Shalneva, speaking from Germany, said the closures would not affect business in Saudi Arabia as Western Union already has two major agents, Al-Bilad Bank and Samba — operating in more than 130 locations. These strategic relationships, she said, provide other services besides money transfer. Shalneva played down the closures, claiming it was “part of the normal course of business.

“The closure of a handful of locations that were opened by the third agent will not affect our business,” she added. She stressed that regulatory authorities in the Kingdom had no influence on Western Union's decision to close the agents down.

Meanwhile, Shalneva confirmed Western Union was all set to announce new products and services for the Gulf region including Saudi Arabia. Kuwait-based mobile network operator Zain has confirmed it has teamed up with the company to deliver joint mobile money transfer services in MENA countries through its Zap platform, according to a report seen by Arab News on Wednesday. The Zap service already gives Zain customers access to a full range of transactional services from their mobile phones. Customers can manage bank accounts, top-up or transfer airtime, and move money to businesses, friends and family.

Western Union currently serves millions of people in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South Asia with more than 278,000 agent locations in about 160 countries.

More than 270 banks and postal institutions across the world are Western Union agents. The Kingdom is home to about nine million foreign workers, many of them using Western Union to send money back home.

Zain Zap, Postal Corporation sign partnership agreement

Western Union cuts ties with its Riyadh partner

NOVEMBER 2009 | 10www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

“send money”FNB

Launch

FNB eMoney Product House CEO, Yolande van Wyk

NOVEMBER 2009 | 11www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Zain Kenya has signed a partnership agreement with Postal Corporation that will enable its customers to register for the company's ZAP services through postal outlets.

Speaking at the launch the postmaster, retired major general Hussein Ali said that the partnership agreement designate postal corporation as an agent for the ZAP branch where they will accept cash deposits and make payments on behalf of ZAIN Kenya money transfer service customers.

"Under this agency, Postal Corporation will on behalf of Zain Kenya undertake the registration of new zap brand service at various postal outlets and a commission of sh50 per customer," he said.

He went on to say that the corporation will facilitate cash-in and cash-out transaction where it will earn a commission of sh10 and sh15 per transaction.

Zain Kenya Managing Director Rene Meza said that using the ZAP services customers can now deposit or withdraw money from their accounts through Posta offices.

"Customers can now access zap cash transfer services in at least 14 outlets in Nairobi and 800 postal offices countrywide before the end of November" Meza said adding that the corporations strong presence especially in the rural and peri-urban areas was a wise move.

Meza said that more than Sh1 billion has been transferred through the ZAP service since it was launched early this year adding that they were in talks with other financial institutions to increase the penetration of the service in the rural areas.

“Posta outlets will augment the existing 3,000 agents countrywide, a move that is expected to deepen the penetration of the eight month old mobile commerce service.

ZAP customers can now sign for the Zain services by sending an SMS with word zap to 455 after which they will be provided with a vital bank account.

The account will enable them use their mobile phones in as much the same way as debit cards.

RIYADH — Eight Western Union centers in Riyadh have been shut after the money transfer services provider terminated its contract with a local partner, threatening jobs.

Director of Corporate Communications Elena Shalneva confirmed the company had closed the so-called agent locations after cutting ties with Mohammed A. Al-Fanih and Partners for Exchange.

Shalneva, speaking from Germany, said the closures would not affect business in Saudi Arabia as Western Union already has two major agents, Al-Bilad Bank and Samba — operating in more than 130 locations. These strategic relationships, she said, provide other services besides money transfer. Shalneva played down the closures, claiming it was “part of the normal course of business.

“The closure of a handful of locations that were opened by the third agent will not affect our business,” she added. She stressed that regulatory authorities in the Kingdom had no influence on Western Union's decision to close the agents down.

Meanwhile, Shalneva confirmed Western Union was all set to announce new products and services for the Gulf region including Saudi Arabia. Kuwait-based mobile network operator Zain has confirmed it has teamed up with the company to deliver joint mobile money transfer services in MENA countries through its Zap platform, according to a report seen by Arab News on Wednesday. The Zap service already gives Zain customers access to a full range of transactional services from their mobile phones. Customers can manage bank accounts, top-up or transfer airtime, and move money to businesses, friends and family.

Western Union currently serves millions of people in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and South Asia with more than 278,000 agent locations in about 160 countries.

More than 270 banks and postal institutions across the world are Western Union agents. The Kingdom is home to about nine million foreign workers, many of them using Western Union to send money back home.

Zain Zap, Postal Corporation sign partnership agreement

Western Union cuts ties with its Riyadh partner

NOVEMBER 2009 | 10www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

“send money”FNB

Launch

FNB eMoney Product House CEO, Yolande van Wyk

Product of the month

Product of the month

9,500 kilometres submarine telecommunications

cable laid under the sea by Second National

Operator, Globacom. The project which is expected

to revolutionize the provision of telecoms services

on the sub-continent and make services truly

affordable to individuals and corporate organizations,

is connecting Africa with Europe and the United States.

500 Million To Use Mobile Money Services By 2014.

According to new analysis from Juniper Research,

consumer demand for mobile money transfer services

will see users exceed 500 million globally by 2014,

principally in developing countries.

$70 million. The world's largest cell-phone maker,

Nokia Corp, made a significant investment in Obopay,

a mobile service provider that basically turns a cell

phone into an interactive banking card.

16 000 locations. Western Union announced that it

had added 1 000 Agent locations to reach the network

milestone of 15 000 locations across 49 countries and

territories, in the third quarter these efforts were doubled,

with an equal number being added in a single financial

quarter.

9,500 kilometres submarine telecommunications

cable laid under the sea by Second National

Operator, Globacom. The project which is expected

to revolutionize the provision of telecoms services

on the sub-continent and make services truly

affordable to individuals and corporate organizations,

is connecting Africa with Europe and the United States.

500 Million To Use Mobile Money Services By 2014.

According to new analysis from Juniper Research,

consumer demand for mobile money transfer services

will see users exceed 500 million globally by 2014,

principally in developing countries.

$70 million. The world's largest cell-phone maker,

Nokia Corp, made a significant investment in Obopay,

a mobile service provider that basically turns a cell

phone into an interactive banking card.

16 000 locations. Western Union announced that it

had added 1 000 Agent locations to reach the network

milestone of 15 000 locations across 49 countries and

territories, in the third quarter these efforts were doubled,

with an equal number being added in a single financial

quarter.

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 17

all over the country, including procedures and means to handle in an efficient and prudent way the cash 'streams'.

Prudent and cost efficient cash management is one of the main issues to solve in the field of payments and financial services in emerging markets. This is needed because most 'modern' transfers like via mobile phones, often result in immediate withdrawal of cash via an agent network, at least in the starting period of the new service. In Kenya with the Mpesa Mobile Payment solution the cash-in and cash-out service represented about 53% of the transactions during the first period (2007/2008) and still is an important component of the MMT service..

In 2006 an extensive report 'The Role of Postal Networks in Expanding Access to Financial Services' of the World bank clarified the status of pos ta l f i nanc ia l serv ices offered through the postal office networks in emerging countries in all continents.

The study reviewed information on postal financial services in 24 of the 47 countries in the African continent. These countries are all actively involved in the provision of postal financial services albeit with a broad diversity in institutional structures, market performance, products and development. In these African countries, with a population of 682 million people and 14,750 Post Offices, the number of postal financial transactions were 6,9 million with a value of $ 1.6 billion per annum. These services are mostly composed of postal giro and savings accounts transactions, payments for utilities, pensions, remittances (local and international) and savings.

The services at the counters of the post offices have an operational character and are often based on co-operation with local financial institutions, like retail banks (e.g. post and postal savings banks) and giro and savings institutions.

Through these post office service networks the process quality has been defined and maintained under the responsibility of international postal institutions (like Universal Postal Union, UPU) and local governments (Ministry of Communication) and of local financial institutions, and often under the control of the Central bank.

“

”

Of course the local suitability and

benefits of involving post office

networks should be analyzed

for the individual postal organisation

per country

The Universal Postal Union (UPU, an United Nations institute) is a multilateral institution to improve the quality and international co-operating of postal companies. A sub-institution for the African continent of the UPU is the PAPU (Pan African Postal Union).One of the objectives of the PAPU is focused on advancing the poor through postal services especially via financial inclusion. Because of cross-boarder co-operation the African postal networks are an explicit candidate for mobile operators and banks to act as agent for mobile banking and mobile money transfer services, local and international.

Of course the local suitability and benefits of involving post office networks should be analyzed for the individual posta l organisat ion per country. Per country the postal companies have a different position and background in the field of (mass) retail financial services.

The development of an overall a p p l i c a b l e a n a l y s i s - , d e v e l o p m e n t - a n d implementation approach for post office companies to be able to align with partners in a Mobile Money ecosystem can

be supported via the postal multilateral African organisation PAPU.

Especially the expected booming development in the coming years of mobile money transfers and mobile banking can explicitly be supported through a co-operation model for (postal) agent networks, mobile operators and retail (post/ postal savings) banks.

Piet Biemans

CEO POFIB Development BV

www.pofib.com

piet.biemans@pofib.nl

”

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 16

Use of Post office networks improves financial inclusion also through supporting mobile money transfers

Postal Networks

and Mobile Money

Piet Biemans - CEO POFIB Development BV

Through the countrywide coverage the post office networks qualify for improving the financial inclusion for all people, including the

rural and un- and under- banked.

About 60-80% of the people in the African continent are un- and under-banked but about 40% possesses a mobile phone at the moment. This is expected to grow to about 60% in 2012 . Mobile money transfer (MMT) services can be the main driver in increasing financial inclusion of the un- and under banked.

Through the postal networks in the African countries a co-operation modus should and could be developed to be able to cover one of the most critical aspects of success for modern efficient payments through mobile money transfers in

Africa, namely the availability of secure, experienced and cost efficient agent networks to be regulated by the Central Bank.

In the field of low value, high volume cash payments in most (emerging) countries the post offices are handling already an important portion of operational payments, like cash in and cash out services for utility payments, pensions, etc. This often takes place under the approval and control of t h e C e n t r a l B a n k t h r o u g h a l i m i t e d payment/settlement license.

The country wide post offices network can be contracted by mobile operators as a cash agent network, in principle via a contract with one party. In a number of African countries this is already taken place. This makes available a distribution network

to improve people’s access to financial services

POFIB DEVELOPMENT

Piet BiemansCEO POFIB Development BV

“The services at the counters of the post offices

have an operational character and are often

based on co-operation with local financial

institutions, like retail banks (e.g. post and postal

savings banks) and giro and savings institutions.”

CONTRIBUTION |

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 17

all over the country, including procedures and means to handle in an efficient and prudent way the cash 'streams'.

Prudent and cost efficient cash management is one of the main issues to solve in the field of payments and financial services in emerging markets. This is needed because most 'modern' transfers like via mobile phones, often result in immediate withdrawal of cash via an agent network, at least in the starting period of the new service. In Kenya with the Mpesa Mobile Payment solution the cash-in and cash-out service represented about 53% of the transactions during the first period (2007/2008) and still is an important component of the MMT service..

In 2006 an extensive report 'The Role of Postal Networks in Expanding Access to Financial Services' of the World bank clarified the status of pos ta l f i nanc ia l serv ices offered through the postal office networks in emerging countries in all continents.

The study reviewed information on postal financial services in 24 of the 47 countries in the African continent. These countries are all actively involved in the provision of postal financial services albeit with a broad diversity in institutional structures, market performance, products and development. In these African countries, with a population of 682 million people and 14,750 Post Offices, the number of postal financial transactions were 6,9 million with a value of $ 1.6 billion per annum. These services are mostly composed of postal giro and savings accounts transactions, payments for utilities, pensions, remittances (local and international) and savings.

The services at the counters of the post offices have an operational character and are often based on co-operation with local financial institutions, like retail banks (e.g. post and postal savings banks) and giro and savings institutions.

Through these post office service networks the process quality has been defined and maintained under the responsibility of international postal institutions (like Universal Postal Union, UPU) and local governments (Ministry of Communication) and of local financial institutions, and often under the control of the Central bank.

“

”

Of course the local suitability and

benefits of involving post office

networks should be analyzed

for the individual postal organisation

per country

The Universal Postal Union (UPU, an United Nations institute) is a multilateral institution to improve the quality and international co-operating of postal companies. A sub-institution for the African continent of the UPU is the PAPU (Pan African Postal Union).One of the objectives of the PAPU is focused on advancing the poor through postal services especially via financial inclusion. Because of cross-boarder co-operation the African postal networks are an explicit candidate for mobile operators and banks to act as agent for mobile banking and mobile money transfer services, local and international.

Of course the local suitability and benefits of involving post office networks should be analyzed for the individual posta l organisat ion per country. Per country the postal companies have a different position and background in the field of (mass) retail financial services.

The development of an overall a p p l i c a b l e a n a l y s i s - , d e v e l o p m e n t - a n d implementation approach for post office companies to be able to align with partners in a Mobile Money ecosystem can

be supported via the postal multilateral African organisation PAPU.

Especially the expected booming development in the coming years of mobile money transfers and mobile banking can explicitly be supported through a co-operation model for (postal) agent networks, mobile operators and retail (post/ postal savings) banks.

Piet Biemans

CEO POFIB Development BV

www.pofib.com

piet.biemans@pofib.nl

”

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 16

Use of Post office networks improves financial inclusion also through supporting mobile money transfers

Postal Networks

and Mobile Money

Piet Biemans - CEO POFIB Development BV

Through the countrywide coverage the post office networks qualify for improving the financial inclusion for all people, including the

rural and un- and under- banked.

About 60-80% of the people in the African continent are un- and under-banked but about 40% possesses a mobile phone at the moment. This is expected to grow to about 60% in 2012 . Mobile money transfer (MMT) services can be the main driver in increasing financial inclusion of the un- and under banked.

Through the postal networks in the African countries a co-operation modus should and could be developed to be able to cover one of the most critical aspects of success for modern efficient payments through mobile money transfers in

Africa, namely the availability of secure, experienced and cost efficient agent networks to be regulated by the Central Bank.

In the field of low value, high volume cash payments in most (emerging) countries the post offices are handling already an important portion of operational payments, like cash in and cash out services for utility payments, pensions, etc. This often takes place under the approval and control of t h e C e n t r a l B a n k t h r o u g h a l i m i t e d payment/settlement license.

The country wide post offices network can be contracted by mobile operators as a cash agent network, in principle via a contract with one party. In a number of African countries this is already taken place. This makes available a distribution network

to improve people’s access to financial services

POFIB DEVELOPMENT

Piet BiemansCEO POFIB Development BV

“The services at the counters of the post offices

have an operational character and are often

based on co-operation with local financial

institutions, like retail banks (e.g. post and postal

savings banks) and giro and savings institutions.”

CONTRIBUTION |

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 21

effective deployment of many mobile payment services. This retail context problem is compounded by the fact that SMS and USSD technologies can not be used on a POS and do not offer the possibility of printing a receipt.

The universality of our solution comes from the fact that the functions offered by NSDT™ are identical to NFC and is available on every phone model without any modifications. NFC (near Field Communications) is an emerging standard and there are plans to deploy it in western countries over the coming years. This deployment is expensive as it requires a change in existing phones and the installment of specific Point of Sale (POS) terminals. When NFC is used with mobile phones it is under the control of the MNO s, which detracts from the universality of this technology.

To fill a niche of providing the first real opportunity for many unbanked people to get on to a formal “banking ladder” with benefits including basic bank accounts, savings and micro-credits This is very promising for emerging countries as it brings them bank services leveraging the existing cell phone infrastructure already in place. MobiCash has a simple solution to bank the unbanked and offer them secure mobile transaction capabilities.

The latest full set of mobile subscriber figures for all of South Africa's mobile operators relates to the end of March 2009. In the three months ending March 31 2009, the total mobile customer base increased by 3.8% to surpass 51.9mn.

Clearly define and describe your target market?

Urban Elite 3.5 million 8% Banked / Insured

Urban Middle Class 9.2 million 21% Banked/ Underinsured

Emerging Consumers 17.2 million 39% Unbanked / Uninsured

Rural Survivalists 11.4 million 26% Unbanked / Uninsured

The market can be split into four distinct sectors: -

The 'Emerging Consumers' and Rural Survivalists are MobiCash' target market.

They are: -? 82% black;? Live in rural or peri-urban areas;? 60% of households own a cellular telephone (GHS 2005)? Cellphones in use: 39.66 million (2006). A little over 70% of cell phone users do not have a land line at home

(AMPS2005RA and AMPS2003A)

The country's three cellular network operators - Vodacom, MTN and Cell C - provide telephony to over 50-million subscribers or nearly 100% of the population. 85% of these are pre-paid.

Network effects become significant after a certain subscription percentage has been achieved, called critical mass. At the critical mass point, the value obtained from the good or service is greater than or equal to the price paid for the good or service. As the value of the good is determined by the user base, this implies that after a certain number of people have subscribed to the service or purchased the good, additional people will subscribe to the service or purchase the good due to the positive 'utility:price' ratio.

A key business concern must then be how to attract users prior to reaching critical mass. MobiCash offers three ways to move funds between MobiCash accounts: proximity transfers, remote transfers, and web-based transfers. MobiCash can be set up so that receiving a P2P payment can serve to enroll new users automatically. This feature of the MobiCash mobile payment system makes it highly viral. Scalable and Viral solution:

MobiCash is creating a fully meshed African Payment Network with points of presence (POP's) in all major African cities. A fully operational Pan African Payment Network will allow African nations to link directly with each other, rather than having to switch through one of the major US or European hubs.

MobiCash has already established a firm foothold in Africa and has or is finalizing licenses, joint venture agreements with in country partners in Africa and the rest of the world.

Explain the 'Network Effect' of your business model

What is your expansion / growth strategy?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 20

MobiCash was born out of the need to develop a convenient, secure and affordable payment platform that will address the use of our technology to enable people who are not served by financial institutions to start using financial services without having to access them through traditional bank branches.

Give us a brief description of your business – what do you do?

Give an example of how the transaction of your business model works?

MobiCash was born out of the need to develop a convenient, secure and affordable payment platform that will address the use of our technology to enable people who are not served by financial institutions to start using financial services without having to access them through traditional bank branches. By combining our vast knowledge in various IT domains and the experience of our management team in learning and excelling at new technologies, we were able to devise a realistic business model and plan that utilise the convergence of banking and telecommunications technologies. With MobiCash, every phone becomes like a bank account that is identified by its phone number. Users can easily load, transfer, spend, give or retrieve cash from their phone.

MobiCash leverages the ubiquity and power of the standard mobile phone as a payment platform, delivering more customer convenience. MobiCash is able to offer anyone with a cell phone a convenient, simple and easy to use mobile payment and banking at low transaction fees regardless of the device and the mobile network operator he is on. MobiCash turns any cell phone into a Merchant Point of Sale (PoS), giving the merchant the ability to do both Merchant-to-Customer

and Customer-to Merchant transactions, opening up business opportunities for a multitude of small businesses and operators. The merchant can sell goods and services as well as take deposits and provide cash back services.

is the cornerstone of our product development and marketing strategy using any cell phone, over any network! Overview of the technology include: NSDT™ (Near Sound Data Transfer) and Voice Biometrics that works immediately on every phone. Transactions are securely signed with NSDT™ a technology that sends “cryptosounds” through the phone's audio channel to enable contact-less mobile payment. To add another layer of security our Voice Biometric solution is accomplished by comparing the voiceprint that was created at enrolment to a sample given when the user wants to sign a transaction. Authentication is very fast; it can be completed in 0.5 seconds.

The majority of existing mobile payment solutions rely on technologies such as SMS, USSD, NFC, or STK that suffer from weak security, mobile network operator dependence, requirements for specific handset technology, or inappropriate design for retail transactions. SMS and USSD payment processes are time consuming and ill suited to the retail context and illiterate clients! These weaknesses have hindered the

What makes your business concept unique and universal?

The patented technology developed by our partner TagAttitude

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 21

effective deployment of many mobile payment services. This retail context problem is compounded by the fact that SMS and USSD technologies can not be used on a POS and do not offer the possibility of printing a receipt.

The universality of our solution comes from the fact that the functions offered by NSDT™ are identical to NFC and is available on every phone model without any modifications. NFC (near Field Communications) is an emerging standard and there are plans to deploy it in western countries over the coming years. This deployment is expensive as it requires a change in existing phones and the installment of specific Point of Sale (POS) terminals. When NFC is used with mobile phones it is under the control of the MNO s, which detracts from the universality of this technology.

To fill a niche of providing the first real opportunity for many unbanked people to get on to a formal “banking ladder” with benefits including basic bank accounts, savings and micro-credits This is very promising for emerging countries as it brings them bank services leveraging the existing cell phone infrastructure already in place. MobiCash has a simple solution to bank the unbanked and offer them secure mobile transaction capabilities.

The latest full set of mobile subscriber figures for all of South Africa's mobile operators relates to the end of March 2009. In the three months ending March 31 2009, the total mobile customer base increased by 3.8% to surpass 51.9mn.

Clearly define and describe your target market?

Urban Elite 3.5 million 8% Banked / Insured

Urban Middle Class 9.2 million 21% Banked/ Underinsured

Emerging Consumers 17.2 million 39% Unbanked / Uninsured

Rural Survivalists 11.4 million 26% Unbanked / Uninsured

The market can be split into four distinct sectors: -

The 'Emerging Consumers' and Rural Survivalists are MobiCash' target market.

They are: -? 82% black;? Live in rural or peri-urban areas;? 60% of households own a cellular telephone (GHS 2005)? Cellphones in use: 39.66 million (2006). A little over 70% of cell phone users do not have a land line at home

(AMPS2005RA and AMPS2003A)

The country's three cellular network operators - Vodacom, MTN and Cell C - provide telephony to over 50-million subscribers or nearly 100% of the population. 85% of these are pre-paid.

Network effects become significant after a certain subscription percentage has been achieved, called critical mass. At the critical mass point, the value obtained from the good or service is greater than or equal to the price paid for the good or service. As the value of the good is determined by the user base, this implies that after a certain number of people have subscribed to the service or purchased the good, additional people will subscribe to the service or purchase the good due to the positive 'utility:price' ratio.

A key business concern must then be how to attract users prior to reaching critical mass. MobiCash offers three ways to move funds between MobiCash accounts: proximity transfers, remote transfers, and web-based transfers. MobiCash can be set up so that receiving a P2P payment can serve to enroll new users automatically. This feature of the MobiCash mobile payment system makes it highly viral. Scalable and Viral solution:

MobiCash is creating a fully meshed African Payment Network with points of presence (POP's) in all major African cities. A fully operational Pan African Payment Network will allow African nations to link directly with each other, rather than having to switch through one of the major US or European hubs.

MobiCash has already established a firm foothold in Africa and has or is finalizing licenses, joint venture agreements with in country partners in Africa and the rest of the world.

Explain the 'Network Effect' of your business model

What is your expansion / growth strategy?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 20

MobiCash was born out of the need to develop a convenient, secure and affordable payment platform that will address the use of our technology to enable people who are not served by financial institutions to start using financial services without having to access them through traditional bank branches.

Give us a brief description of your business – what do you do?

Give an example of how the transaction of your business model works?

MobiCash was born out of the need to develop a convenient, secure and affordable payment platform that will address the use of our technology to enable people who are not served by financial institutions to start using financial services without having to access them through traditional bank branches. By combining our vast knowledge in various IT domains and the experience of our management team in learning and excelling at new technologies, we were able to devise a realistic business model and plan that utilise the convergence of banking and telecommunications technologies. With MobiCash, every phone becomes like a bank account that is identified by its phone number. Users can easily load, transfer, spend, give or retrieve cash from their phone.

MobiCash leverages the ubiquity and power of the standard mobile phone as a payment platform, delivering more customer convenience. MobiCash is able to offer anyone with a cell phone a convenient, simple and easy to use mobile payment and banking at low transaction fees regardless of the device and the mobile network operator he is on. MobiCash turns any cell phone into a Merchant Point of Sale (PoS), giving the merchant the ability to do both Merchant-to-Customer

and Customer-to Merchant transactions, opening up business opportunities for a multitude of small businesses and operators. The merchant can sell goods and services as well as take deposits and provide cash back services.

is the cornerstone of our product development and marketing strategy using any cell phone, over any network! Overview of the technology include: NSDT™ (Near Sound Data Transfer) and Voice Biometrics that works immediately on every phone. Transactions are securely signed with NSDT™ a technology that sends “cryptosounds” through the phone's audio channel to enable contact-less mobile payment. To add another layer of security our Voice Biometric solution is accomplished by comparing the voiceprint that was created at enrolment to a sample given when the user wants to sign a transaction. Authentication is very fast; it can be completed in 0.5 seconds.

The majority of existing mobile payment solutions rely on technologies such as SMS, USSD, NFC, or STK that suffer from weak security, mobile network operator dependence, requirements for specific handset technology, or inappropriate design for retail transactions. SMS and USSD payment processes are time consuming and ill suited to the retail context and illiterate clients! These weaknesses have hindered the

What makes your business concept unique and universal?

The patented technology developed by our partner TagAttitude

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 23

Q:Could you provide a brief overview of the

organization and your role and responsibilities in it?

Q:What inspired the Laptop Bank slogan?

A:FrontlineSMS:Credit was founded to help

organizations more readily utilize and integrate mobile payments in to their core management systems. From making it easier to send mobile payments en masse for payroll purposes to automating the micro-loan repayment process over the mobile network, we aim to provide a free & open source solution anyone can use to issue mobile financial services with the same robust data management as a large institution.

As Executive Director, my primary responsibility is to ensure that tasks are properly delegated throughout the FrontlineSMS:Credit team. By encouraging our staff to innovate and bring their own systems and solutions to fruition, I also aim to make the FrontlineSMS:Credit community both positive and proactive.

A:When finished, FrontlineSMS:Credit will allow

any mobile payment system to communicate with any microfinance management information system (MIS) and visa versa. Accordingly, implementing MFIs will be able to distribute a full range of financial services via simple text message, making the banking services they provide from their central computer equally

accessible from one end of the country to the other - a laptop bank. Since FrontlineSMS:Credit is being designed to run over existing mobile payment networks, however, it will only work where those networks already exist.

A:Today, any user within an existing mobile

payment network can send loans and payments via their handset. We hear numerous cases, though, of groups spending the entire day to pay large workforces over the mobile payment network. By meshing the group messaging functionality of FrontlineSMS with whichever mobile payment system an organization uses, that organization will be able to distribute payments en masse in a matter of minutes. Also, every payment will be automatically attached to a worker or client profile based on their phone number, which FrontlineSMS already makes possible (e.g. if you click a user # in FrontlineSMS, you can see every message sent to and received from that user).

Bill Gates writes that "The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the operation." By expediting the payment process and automating data management,

FrontlineSMS:Credit will allow implementing institutions to commit their time to more valuable

Q:How does the process work, and what are

the main benefits for MFIs and loan recipients?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 23

Q:Could you provide a brief overview of the

organization and your role and responsibilities in it?

Q:What inspired the Laptop Bank slogan?

A:FrontlineSMS:Credit was founded to help

organizations more readily utilize and integrate mobile payments in to their core management systems. From making it easier to send mobile payments en masse for payroll purposes to automating the micro-loan repayment process over the mobile network, we aim to provide a free & open source solution anyone can use to issue mobile financial services with the same robust data management as a large institution.

As Executive Director, my primary responsibility is to ensure that tasks are properly delegated throughout the FrontlineSMS:Credit team. By encouraging our staff to innovate and bring their own systems and solutions to fruition, I also aim to make the FrontlineSMS:Credit community both positive and proactive.

A:When finished, FrontlineSMS:Credit will allow

any mobile payment system to communicate with any microfinance management information system (MIS) and visa versa. Accordingly, implementing MFIs will be able to distribute a full range of financial services via simple text message, making the banking services they provide from their central computer equally

accessible from one end of the country to the other - a laptop bank. Since FrontlineSMS:Credit is being designed to run over existing mobile payment networks, however, it will only work where those networks already exist.

A:Today, any user within an existing mobile

payment network can send loans and payments via their handset. We hear numerous cases, though, of groups spending the entire day to pay large workforces over the mobile payment network. By meshing the group messaging functionality of FrontlineSMS with whichever mobile payment system an organization uses, that organization will be able to distribute payments en masse in a matter of minutes. Also, every payment will be automatically attached to a worker or client profile based on their phone number, which FrontlineSMS already makes possible (e.g. if you click a user # in FrontlineSMS, you can see every message sent to and received from that user).

Bill Gates writes that "The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the operation." By expediting the payment process and automating data management,

FrontlineSMS:Credit will allow implementing institutions to commit their time to more valuable

Q:How does the process work, and what are

the main benefits for MFIs and loan recipients?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 24

tasks, like seeking greater loan portfolios or reinvesting costs saved from automation.

A:FrontlineSMS is popular precisely because it

offers an intuitive, low-tech solution to a range of complex problems. I initially chose FrontlineSMS as the base platform for CreditSMS for the same reason. We decided to officially join FrontlineSMS as FrontlineSMS:Credit to signal to potential users that we embrace the same principles of openness and practicality.

A:We still have several months of coding left

before the beta version of our software will be available. Once available, we anticipate it will allow MFIs to more readily leverage mobile payment systems to lower operational costs, increase geographic impact and lower interest rates commensurate with the amount saved during loan distribution and collection. In the future, we aim to facilitate increasingly complex financial services via local mobile payment networks. In terms of upfront capital spending for MFI's in Africa,what will the cost structure be for MFI's using FrontlineSMS:Credit.

FrontlineSMS:Credit is being developed as a free & open source solution, so no one will ever have to pay for the software. In order to use it, however, implementers will need to plug in to a mobile payment network and put m-money into their m-wallet.

That cost, however, is relatively insignificant given the fact that automating a range of transactions and executing them over the mobile payment network will significantly cut operational costs. In other words, by investing in the ability to leverage mobile payments, implementing institutions will be able to both save money and increase revenue. Everything boils down to opportunity costs: If you pay X workers X dollars/shillings/francs to travel X kilometers every day, you can't use that money for other purposes. Conversely, if one worker in front of a computer pays X workers simultaneously and instantly over the mobile network, you save the costs of time, transportation and staff salary, which you can reinvest in revenue-generating activities.

Q:FrontlineSMS is very popular and credible in

Africa. what inspired the coming together of FrontlineSMS and CreditSMS to emerge as frontlineSMS:Credit?

Q:What type of impact has FrontlineSMS:Credit

had thus far, and what does the future hold for the organization?

Our selection process was designed to find passionate, knowledgeable and respected individuals across a range of industries. Currently, our board is comprised of experts in microfinance, insurance, international politics, mobile payments, information communication technology, mobile innovation, and healthcare. Together, they help FrontlineSMS:Credit anticipate and pro-actively respond to industry developments and guide our direction.

More fundamentally, I think we were able to attract such well-known figures because our mission is to help bring financial inclusion to every corner of the world. The thought itself is energizing and, happily, resonates with virtually everyone I meet.

A: The mobile money space in Africa is

progressing at an exponential pace. Since an entirely new technology could be sweeping the continent in five years, it's difficult to tell where FrontlineSMS:Credit will be. Nevertheless, we plan to follow developments in the space closely and continuously provide free & open source solutions to leverage available technologies for financial inclusion.

Our chief programmers live in Nairobi and we have several beta partners lined up across the continent. Otherwise, our team comes from all over: Canada, United Kingdom, Argentina & the United States. We hope to expand our presence in Africa as quickly as possible, however, and are always happy to discuss potential ways to partner and collaborate.

Q: You have an impressive board membership.

What did you looked out for in them and how where you able to bring on board such experienced hands?

Q: What should Africans watch out in coming

months and years?

Q: Agent Networks or representatives in Africa

already?

"Ben Lyon is the Founder and Executive Director of FrontlineSMS:Credit. He graduated from Rhodes College, where he majored in Economics and International Studies with a focus on microfinance and informal economics. Ben lives in Washington, DC."

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 24

tasks, like seeking greater loan portfolios or reinvesting costs saved from automation.

A:FrontlineSMS is popular precisely because it

offers an intuitive, low-tech solution to a range of complex problems. I initially chose FrontlineSMS as the base platform for CreditSMS for the same reason. We decided to officially join FrontlineSMS as FrontlineSMS:Credit to signal to potential users that we embrace the same principles of openness and practicality.

A:We still have several months of coding left

before the beta version of our software will be available. Once available, we anticipate it will allow MFIs to more readily leverage mobile payment systems to lower operational costs, increase geographic impact and lower interest rates commensurate with the amount saved during loan distribution and collection. In the future, we aim to facilitate increasingly complex financial services via local mobile payment networks. In terms of upfront capital spending for MFI's in Africa,what will the cost structure be for MFI's using FrontlineSMS:Credit.

FrontlineSMS:Credit is being developed as a free & open source solution, so no one will ever have to pay for the software. In order to use it, however, implementers will need to plug in to a mobile payment network and put m-money into their m-wallet.

That cost, however, is relatively insignificant given the fact that automating a range of transactions and executing them over the mobile payment network will significantly cut operational costs. In other words, by investing in the ability to leverage mobile payments, implementing institutions will be able to both save money and increase revenue. Everything boils down to opportunity costs: If you pay X workers X dollars/shillings/francs to travel X kilometers every day, you can't use that money for other purposes. Conversely, if one worker in front of a computer pays X workers simultaneously and instantly over the mobile network, you save the costs of time, transportation and staff salary, which you can reinvest in revenue-generating activities.

Q:FrontlineSMS is very popular and credible in

Africa. what inspired the coming together of FrontlineSMS and CreditSMS to emerge as frontlineSMS:Credit?

Q:What type of impact has FrontlineSMS:Credit

had thus far, and what does the future hold for the organization?

Our selection process was designed to find passionate, knowledgeable and respected individuals across a range of industries. Currently, our board is comprised of experts in microfinance, insurance, international politics, mobile payments, information communication technology, mobile innovation, and healthcare. Together, they help FrontlineSMS:Credit anticipate and pro-actively respond to industry developments and guide our direction.

More fundamentally, I think we were able to attract such well-known figures because our mission is to help bring financial inclusion to every corner of the world. The thought itself is energizing and, happily, resonates with virtually everyone I meet.

A: The mobile money space in Africa is

progressing at an exponential pace. Since an entirely new technology could be sweeping the continent in five years, it's difficult to tell where FrontlineSMS:Credit will be. Nevertheless, we plan to follow developments in the space closely and continuously provide free & open source solutions to leverage available technologies for financial inclusion.

Our chief programmers live in Nairobi and we have several beta partners lined up across the continent. Otherwise, our team comes from all over: Canada, United Kingdom, Argentina & the United States. We hope to expand our presence in Africa as quickly as possible, however, and are always happy to discuss potential ways to partner and collaborate.

Q: You have an impressive board membership.

What did you looked out for in them and how where you able to bring on board such experienced hands?

Q: What should Africans watch out in coming

months and years?

Q: Agent Networks or representatives in Africa

already?

"Ben Lyon is the Founder and Executive Director of FrontlineSMS:Credit. He graduated from Rhodes College, where he majored in Economics and International Studies with a focus on microfinance and informal economics. Ben lives in Washington, DC."

What is the genesis of millions that are left behind, all across Africa from formal financial inclusion?

In a world where money influences almost everything that we do, the majority of people living in Africa do not have access to basic financial services. This means that they are locked into the constraints of a cash economy. It is extremely difficult for these people to budget and plan their finances effectively, to save in a secure way, to send mony cost-effectively and instantly etc. If we do not solve this, the majority of people living in Africa will remain disenfranchised. An efficient, electronic money system is essential in order to defeat poverty on the continent.

How Can mobile technology help?

Mobile telephony provides the ideal infrastructure to deliver an electronic money system to millions because of the following reasons. It is almost ubiquitous (at least for areas where we have economic activity), the capital has already been spent to deploy the infrastructure, it is intuitive to use and it can deliver extremely secure solutions.

Specifically, How can Fundamo's technology help?

Fundamo brings more than ten years of experience with multiple deployments in Africa (as well as many others globally) to help resolve issues and overcome challenges. Our expertise and technology have been tested in complex production situations and our technology is recognized as the leading platform with which to deploy these kinds of systems. We also have an approach of collaboration where we work with local companies as well as large multi-national technology companies (like Accenture and Sun) to ensure that we have more comprehensive solutions.

Do you see active participation of mobile operators in banking the unbanked in Africa?

Many mobile operators have successfully deployed solutions and established business units to bring banking services to the unbanked. Many more have plans.

The financial institutions are slow on the mobile segment, is this deliberate strategy or they are still coming to terms with the mobile channel?

To the contrary, many banks have moved fast. In some instances banks are leading the way in using mobile technology to bank the un- (or under-) banked. As an example, Standard Bank in South Africa use Fundamo technology through a dedicated division (called Community Banking) to open bank accounts for people through retail outlets and this seems to be very popular. In other countries (like Nigeria and Zambia) we are also seeing a lot of activity and actions from banks. (both small and large).

MTN and Fundamo relationship.

MTN contracted Fundamo as a strategic supplier for the group to deploy MobileMoney (their financial services brand) in all of the 21 countries where MTN operate in an aggressive roll-out plan. This roll-out is on track and is probably one of the more ambitious roll-out projects on a Group basis in the world. The solution has been deployed in the majority of countries and is in active production in a number of these. As far as I am aware, few companies (if any) have the capacity and experience to tackle such an ambitious project and we are thankful that MTN chose us for this project.

Roll out status in Africa.

Fundamo technology has now been deployed, or is in the process of being deployed in 25 African countries. The technology is operated under various brands and with different business models. Sometimes our clients are mobile operators and sometimes banks, but all of them can be assured of best of breed technology, high caliber of support and ongoing innovation.

Hannes van RensburgCEO FOUNDER

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 26

What is the genesis of millions that are left behind, all across Africa from formal financial inclusion?

In a world where money influences almost everything that we do, the majority of people living in Africa do not have access to basic financial services. This means that they are locked into the constraints of a cash economy. It is extremely difficult for these people to budget and plan their finances effectively, to save in a secure way, to send mony cost-effectively and instantly etc. If we do not solve this, the majority of people living in Africa will remain disenfranchised. An efficient, electronic money system is essential in order to defeat poverty on the continent.

How Can mobile technology help?

Mobile telephony provides the ideal infrastructure to deliver an electronic money system to millions because of the following reasons. It is almost ubiquitous (at least for areas where we have economic activity), the capital has already been spent to deploy the infrastructure, it is intuitive to use and it can deliver extremely secure solutions.

Specifically, How can Fundamo's technology help?

Fundamo brings more than ten years of experience with multiple deployments in Africa (as well as many others globally) to help resolve issues and overcome challenges. Our expertise and technology have been tested in complex production situations and our technology is recognized as the leading platform with which to deploy these kinds of systems. We also have an approach of collaboration where we work with local companies as well as large multi-national technology companies (like Accenture and Sun) to ensure that we have more comprehensive solutions.

Do you see active participation of mobile operators in banking the unbanked in Africa?

Many mobile operators have successfully deployed solutions and established business units to bring banking services to the unbanked. Many more have plans.

The financial institutions are slow on the mobile segment, is this deliberate strategy or they are still coming to terms with the mobile channel?

To the contrary, many banks have moved fast. In some instances banks are leading the way in using mobile technology to bank the un- (or under-) banked. As an example, Standard Bank in South Africa use Fundamo technology through a dedicated division (called Community Banking) to open bank accounts for people through retail outlets and this seems to be very popular. In other countries (like Nigeria and Zambia) we are also seeing a lot of activity and actions from banks. (both small and large).

MTN and Fundamo relationship.

MTN contracted Fundamo as a strategic supplier for the group to deploy MobileMoney (their financial services brand) in all of the 21 countries where MTN operate in an aggressive roll-out plan. This roll-out is on track and is probably one of the more ambitious roll-out projects on a Group basis in the world. The solution has been deployed in the majority of countries and is in active production in a number of these. As far as I am aware, few companies (if any) have the capacity and experience to tackle such an ambitious project and we are thankful that MTN chose us for this project.

Roll out status in Africa.

Fundamo technology has now been deployed, or is in the process of being deployed in 25 African countries. The technology is operated under various brands and with different business models. Sometimes our clients are mobile operators and sometimes banks, but all of them can be assured of best of breed technology, high caliber of support and ongoing innovation.

Hannes van RensburgCEO FOUNDER

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 26

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 29

Please share with Africans your experiences in the Philippines Micro Finance sector?

What are the major Challenges and are the conditions similar to what we have in Africa?

I have been working in the microfinance sector in the Philippines for the past ten years, before that I spent two years in Bolivia and also worked for nine years in Jamaica in the field of microfinance. Over the past ten years, I have worked closely with the rural banking sector in the Philippines which is now one of the largest providers of microfinance services in the country managing more than 1.5 million borrowers (over 800,000 of these borrowers are classified as microenterprise borrowers with the rest being small farmers, low income salary loan clients, and small businesses) and more than 6 million deposit accounts (over 5.3 million are micro deposit accounts with balances of less than $300). To read more about the history of rural banks in microfinance, please see the attached article I wrote for the ADB a couple of years ago.

Over the past ten years, my team has also coordinated closely with the Microfinance Council of the Philippines and the Philippine Central Bank as the field of microfinance has moved to one of becoming much more commercial and integrated within the financial sector as a whole. Microfinance in the Philippines is now much broader than it was 10 years ago encompassing new financial products and services that include new approaches to reaching out to small farmers, housing microfinance, microinsurance, and more recently, micro remittances, domestic transfers, mobile money, mobile phone banking and mobile commerce services.

The major challenges are still to reach out to millions of potential clients with limited access to banking services and to do so in a more cost effective manner than we have been able to do so in the past. This is where mobile money and mobile phone banking can come into play.

Entrepreneurs are learning that rural banks can provide a broader range of financial services. In terms of mobile money and greater access to banking services, clients are now able to register

What can entrepreneurs learn from MABS experiences in the Philippines?

Lessons from Phillipinesby John Owens

their phone, open a bank account, and do just about everything that you can do on the internet or through an ATM or POS through their mobile phone. Given that a mobile phone can be a debit card as well as a functioning POS, entrepreneurs of all sizes can now buy and sell products, pay salaries to workers, and make bank transactions remotely through their mobile phone.

Globe Telecom's e-money issuer, G-Xchange has created a wonderful mobile money platform that, when linked to a small bank, credit cooperative, or microfinance institution can provide powerful access to financial services including deposits, loans, payments, money transfer services, etc. To learn more about how rural banks are using mobile money and the GCASH platform in particular to expand access to banking services, feel free to c h e c k o u t o u r w e b s i t e a t

or the videos at

Mobile Money offers tremendous opportunities for small entrepreneurs to send and receive money and we can see this happening in Kenya with M-Pesa and beginning to happen with others around the region. While mobile money is like a pre-paid debit account that can be used to send and receive money; in order to expand greater access to financial services such as regulated bank accounts, access to credit, payments including utility and bill payments, as well as buying and selling goods and services, it is important to link mobile money accounts to products and services offered by small financial institutions including rural or community banks, credit cooperatives, and microfinance NGOs. I think the important thing to stress is that to expand access to full financial services, there is the need for collaboration between mobile money issuers and banks and other financial players, especially those that have successfully provided access to financial services for microentreprenuers and low income households. While mobile money issuers have

Globe Telecom's Gcash has helped integrate Millions into formal Financial Inclusion.How is it benefiting the Micro Finance enterprises?

Drawing from your experiences, do you think Mobile technology can benefit Micro Finance Enterprises in Africa where Millions own Mobile Phones but yet without a Bnak account?

www.mobilephonebanking.orgwww.youtube.com/rbapmabs

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Factor Shaka Mobile is a niche market wireless telecom

targeting Diaspora Africans with Mobile Money and

Voice services to their home country. Shaka Mobile will

launch services in the US in the first quarter of 2010.

1. Mobile Money Transfer – P2P (person to

person), C2B (consumer to business) from the handset

to home country

2. Bill Pay – ability to pay for bills back home

3. Airtime topup – ability to pay for airtime topup for

friends and relatives back home on any network in real

time.

4. Twin pre-paid visa card – we will have two visa

cards linked to a mobile wallet. The diaspora client can

move money in real time between the cards. This

program is regulatory compliant.

1. Fave 1 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to one number on any network to home

country $45 per month

2. Fave 2 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to two numbers on any network to

home country $50 per month

3. Fave 3 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network an

unlimited calling to three numbers on any network to

home country $55 per month

4. Fave 4 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to four numbers on any network to

home country $60 per month

5. Fave 5 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to five numbers on any network to

home country $65 per month

Mobile Money Services

Voice Services

Eco-system

Future Plans

Our eco-system and technology comprise of the

following:

1. Voice – nationwide GSM coverage in the US.

2. Mobile Money Transfer – robust mobile money

platform that consists of a mobile wallet, bill pay option

and airtime topup function.

3. Pre-paid Visa Card Program – twin pre-paid visa

card that will be tied to the mobile wallet. A Diaspora

African can send one card home. They can move

money in real time to their visa cards from the mobile

wallet.

4. Banking – we are able to integrate to banks

which will allow customers to link their accounts to their

mobile wallet for topup.

Shaka Mobile plans to expand to the UK and other

lucrative expatriate markets with high numbers of

Africans. We are looking to grow our eco-system with

partners in the telecom, banking and distribution space.

We encourage interested partners to contact us for

potential synergy. We will continue to scale our services

with relevant value added services that meet the needs

of Diaspora Africans.

Dhidha J. Timonadtimona@Shakamobile.comwww.shakamobile.com

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 29

Please share with Africans your experiences in the Philippines Micro Finance sector?

What are the major Challenges and are the conditions similar to what we have in Africa?

I have been working in the microfinance sector in the Philippines for the past ten years, before that I spent two years in Bolivia and also worked for nine years in Jamaica in the field of microfinance. Over the past ten years, I have worked closely with the rural banking sector in the Philippines which is now one of the largest providers of microfinance services in the country managing more than 1.5 million borrowers (over 800,000 of these borrowers are classified as microenterprise borrowers with the rest being small farmers, low income salary loan clients, and small businesses) and more than 6 million deposit accounts (over 5.3 million are micro deposit accounts with balances of less than $300). To read more about the history of rural banks in microfinance, please see the attached article I wrote for the ADB a couple of years ago.

Over the past ten years, my team has also coordinated closely with the Microfinance Council of the Philippines and the Philippine Central Bank as the field of microfinance has moved to one of becoming much more commercial and integrated within the financial sector as a whole. Microfinance in the Philippines is now much broader than it was 10 years ago encompassing new financial products and services that include new approaches to reaching out to small farmers, housing microfinance, microinsurance, and more recently, micro remittances, domestic transfers, mobile money, mobile phone banking and mobile commerce services.

The major challenges are still to reach out to millions of potential clients with limited access to banking services and to do so in a more cost effective manner than we have been able to do so in the past. This is where mobile money and mobile phone banking can come into play.

Entrepreneurs are learning that rural banks can provide a broader range of financial services. In terms of mobile money and greater access to banking services, clients are now able to register

What can entrepreneurs learn from MABS experiences in the Philippines?

Lessons from Phillipinesby John Owens

their phone, open a bank account, and do just about everything that you can do on the internet or through an ATM or POS through their mobile phone. Given that a mobile phone can be a debit card as well as a functioning POS, entrepreneurs of all sizes can now buy and sell products, pay salaries to workers, and make bank transactions remotely through their mobile phone.

Globe Telecom's e-money issuer, G-Xchange has created a wonderful mobile money platform that, when linked to a small bank, credit cooperative, or microfinance institution can provide powerful access to financial services including deposits, loans, payments, money transfer services, etc. To learn more about how rural banks are using mobile money and the GCASH platform in particular to expand access to banking services, feel free to c h e c k o u t o u r w e b s i t e a t

or the videos at

Mobile Money offers tremendous opportunities for small entrepreneurs to send and receive money and we can see this happening in Kenya with M-Pesa and beginning to happen with others around the region. While mobile money is like a pre-paid debit account that can be used to send and receive money; in order to expand greater access to financial services such as regulated bank accounts, access to credit, payments including utility and bill payments, as well as buying and selling goods and services, it is important to link mobile money accounts to products and services offered by small financial institutions including rural or community banks, credit cooperatives, and microfinance NGOs. I think the important thing to stress is that to expand access to full financial services, there is the need for collaboration between mobile money issuers and banks and other financial players, especially those that have successfully provided access to financial services for microentreprenuers and low income households. While mobile money issuers have

Globe Telecom's Gcash has helped integrate Millions into formal Financial Inclusion.How is it benefiting the Micro Finance enterprises?

Drawing from your experiences, do you think Mobile technology can benefit Micro Finance Enterprises in Africa where Millions own Mobile Phones but yet without a Bnak account?

www.mobilephonebanking.orgwww.youtube.com/rbapmabs

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

Factor Shaka Mobile is a niche market wireless telecom

targeting Diaspora Africans with Mobile Money and

Voice services to their home country. Shaka Mobile will

launch services in the US in the first quarter of 2010.

1. Mobile Money Transfer – P2P (person to

person), C2B (consumer to business) from the handset

to home country

2. Bill Pay – ability to pay for bills back home

3. Airtime topup – ability to pay for airtime topup for

friends and relatives back home on any network in real

time.

4. Twin pre-paid visa card – we will have two visa

cards linked to a mobile wallet. The diaspora client can

move money in real time between the cards. This

program is regulatory compliant.

1. Fave 1 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to one number on any network to home

country $45 per month

2. Fave 2 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to two numbers on any network to

home country $50 per month

3. Fave 3 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network an

unlimited calling to three numbers on any network to

home country $55 per month

4. Fave 4 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to four numbers on any network to

home country $60 per month

5. Fave 5 – unlimited US, unlimited in-network and

unlimited calling to five numbers on any network to

home country $65 per month

Mobile Money Services

Voice Services

Eco-system

Future Plans

Our eco-system and technology comprise of the

following:

1. Voice – nationwide GSM coverage in the US.

2. Mobile Money Transfer – robust mobile money

platform that consists of a mobile wallet, bill pay option

and airtime topup function.

3. Pre-paid Visa Card Program – twin pre-paid visa

card that will be tied to the mobile wallet. A Diaspora

African can send one card home. They can move

money in real time to their visa cards from the mobile

wallet.

4. Banking – we are able to integrate to banks

which will allow customers to link their accounts to their

mobile wallet for topup.

Shaka Mobile plans to expand to the UK and other

lucrative expatriate markets with high numbers of

Africans. We are looking to grow our eco-system with

partners in the telecom, banking and distribution space.

We encourage interested partners to contact us for

potential synergy. We will continue to scale our services

with relevant value added services that meet the needs

of Diaspora Africans.

Dhidha J. Timonadtimona@Shakamobile.comwww.shakamobile.com

Share with Africans your Background and about Cyclos

I am working for the organization STRO (Social TRade Organization) and responsible for the open source on-line banking software Cyclos. Cyclos is being developed by two teams of programmers, one in Brazil and one in Uruguay. The objective of the project is to develop open source banking software that is easy to use and maintain, flexible, secure, and highly customizable. The project was started in 2003 and is currently used by more than hundred organizations. The software is available in eight languages and more translations are being worked on.

The base of Cyclos is a banking system but it has several additional modules like e-commerce, loan administration and various community modules like internal messaging, referrals and a notification system. The platform offers currently a large range of financial operations such as (micro) payments, installments, checking balances, monitoring transactions, micro finance handling, remittance handling and payment of both salaries and bills. The system is designed to handle businesses-to-business as well as consumer-to-businesses and person-to-person operations.

All services are available via Web access and mobile phone (WAP1/2). Over the last years it became clear that "low level" access channels where needed. During the last two years we have been working on mobile (delivery) access channels such as SMS and POS (Point of Sale), enabling an integrated mobile banking solution.

The mobile access channels will be ideally suited to provide financial services in remote areas (rural banking) as well as serving the un(der)-

banked. Organizations, local governments and (micro)finance institutions can make use of the platform to connect with low-income and isolated clients through POS devices and mobile phones.

The Social TRade Organizations STRO is a group of foundations that are involved with Micro Credit and trade networks based on internal currencies. The first STRO was founded in 1970 in the Netherlands and has been mostly active in Europe and Latin America. STRO usually works with local partner organizations on financial solutions that stimulate local development and create new possibilities for small and medium sized enterprises. The hart of the Social Trade approach is that money entering poor region should circulate some times before leaving the area for imports from rich areas, in order to organize the local economy, create employment and business opportunities. From this point of view it is important to prevent purchasing power leaving the poor regions because of interest payments or services/solutions that could have been delivered in the community itself. The development and high availability of new technologies offered an opportunity to achieve these goals.

STRO picks up the challenge described by Bank of England's governor Mervyn King:“Is it possible that advances in technology will mean that (...) the world may come to resemble a pure exchange economy? Electronic transactions in real time hold out that possibility. There is no reason, in principle, why final settlements could not be carried out by the private sector without the need for clearing through the central bank. (...) There is no conceptual obstacle to the idea that two individuals engaged in a transaction could settle by a transfer of wealth from one electronic account to another in real time. (...) The same system could match demands and supplies of financial assets, determine prices and make settlements. Financial assets and real goods and services would be priced in terms of a unit of account. Final settlement could be made without any recourse to the central bank.(...) Without such a role in settlements, central banks, in their present form, would no longer exist(...).

Social trade promotes the opportunity for communities to optimize the circulation of purchasing power in their community or region. Using the Social Trade methods the potential of the community can be optimized based on the community's culture with respect for the

What does the STRO organization do? What are its objectives?

In what ways does STRO carry out these objectives?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 30

tremendous potential to provide outreach to anyone with a phone, they cannot provide greater access to credit or offer full deposit services (other than a simple limited mobile money transactional account). For this to happen, we need to see collaboration between the all the players. Fortunately, this is beginning to happen in several countries.

As I mentioned above, the important thing is for financial players, whether they be commercial, rural, or community banks, credit cooperatives, or MFI NGOs to understand the tremendous potential of mobile money and begin to collaborate closely with proper regulated Mobile Money issuers to explore how mobile money can be used to expand greater access and reach out to more clients than has ever been possible before. I am not sure where players like Equity Bank are with their mobile phone banking initiative but I would encourage them to look at ways to collaborate and make use of mobile money platforms like Safaricom (M-Pesa) and other mobile money players to create greater access to financial services. The combination of institutions like Equity Bank and Safaricom (M-Pesa) would provide true access to banking services to millions more people than either institution could do on its own. This kind of collaboration with networks of MFIs and Mobile Money Issuers could really expand access to financial services in Africa and I expect it will happen. See some of the articles I prepared earlier this year with MicroSave to learn a bit more about these opportunities.

On a Final Note, how can technology Benefit African Micro Finance Enterprises in Africa?

JOHN V. OWENSChief of PartyMicroenterprise Access to Banking Services G/F RBAP Bldg.A. Soriano Ave. Cor. Arzobispo St.Intramuros, Manila, Philippines

Wednesday, 24th February 2010 -

Friday, 26th February 2010

Lagos, Nigeria

www.Bspmediagroup.com

November 10,2009Canadawww.mobilemoneycanada.com

Banking & Mobile Payments East Africa, 2010www.aitecafrica.com24-25 February 2010the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) Nairobi, Kenya

Date: June 2010Location: TBC

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 31

Share with Africans your Background and about Cyclos

I am working for the organization STRO (Social TRade Organization) and responsible for the open source on-line banking software Cyclos. Cyclos is being developed by two teams of programmers, one in Brazil and one in Uruguay. The objective of the project is to develop open source banking software that is easy to use and maintain, flexible, secure, and highly customizable. The project was started in 2003 and is currently used by more than hundred organizations. The software is available in eight languages and more translations are being worked on.

The base of Cyclos is a banking system but it has several additional modules like e-commerce, loan administration and various community modules like internal messaging, referrals and a notification system. The platform offers currently a large range of financial operations such as (micro) payments, installments, checking balances, monitoring transactions, micro finance handling, remittance handling and payment of both salaries and bills. The system is designed to handle businesses-to-business as well as consumer-to-businesses and person-to-person operations.

All services are available via Web access and mobile phone (WAP1/2). Over the last years it became clear that "low level" access channels where needed. During the last two years we have been working on mobile (delivery) access channels such as SMS and POS (Point of Sale), enabling an integrated mobile banking solution.

The mobile access channels will be ideally suited to provide financial services in remote areas (rural banking) as well as serving the un(der)-

banked. Organizations, local governments and (micro)finance institutions can make use of the platform to connect with low-income and isolated clients through POS devices and mobile phones.

The Social TRade Organizations STRO is a group of foundations that are involved with Micro Credit and trade networks based on internal currencies. The first STRO was founded in 1970 in the Netherlands and has been mostly active in Europe and Latin America. STRO usually works with local partner organizations on financial solutions that stimulate local development and create new possibilities for small and medium sized enterprises. The hart of the Social Trade approach is that money entering poor region should circulate some times before leaving the area for imports from rich areas, in order to organize the local economy, create employment and business opportunities. From this point of view it is important to prevent purchasing power leaving the poor regions because of interest payments or services/solutions that could have been delivered in the community itself. The development and high availability of new technologies offered an opportunity to achieve these goals.

STRO picks up the challenge described by Bank of England's governor Mervyn King:“Is it possible that advances in technology will mean that (...) the world may come to resemble a pure exchange economy? Electronic transactions in real time hold out that possibility. There is no reason, in principle, why final settlements could not be carried out by the private sector without the need for clearing through the central bank. (...) There is no conceptual obstacle to the idea that two individuals engaged in a transaction could settle by a transfer of wealth from one electronic account to another in real time. (...) The same system could match demands and supplies of financial assets, determine prices and make settlements. Financial assets and real goods and services would be priced in terms of a unit of account. Final settlement could be made without any recourse to the central bank.(...) Without such a role in settlements, central banks, in their present form, would no longer exist(...).

Social trade promotes the opportunity for communities to optimize the circulation of purchasing power in their community or region. Using the Social Trade methods the potential of the community can be optimized based on the community's culture with respect for the

What does the STRO organization do? What are its objectives?

In what ways does STRO carry out these objectives?

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 30

tremendous potential to provide outreach to anyone with a phone, they cannot provide greater access to credit or offer full deposit services (other than a simple limited mobile money transactional account). For this to happen, we need to see collaboration between the all the players. Fortunately, this is beginning to happen in several countries.

As I mentioned above, the important thing is for financial players, whether they be commercial, rural, or community banks, credit cooperatives, or MFI NGOs to understand the tremendous potential of mobile money and begin to collaborate closely with proper regulated Mobile Money issuers to explore how mobile money can be used to expand greater access and reach out to more clients than has ever been possible before. I am not sure where players like Equity Bank are with their mobile phone banking initiative but I would encourage them to look at ways to collaborate and make use of mobile money platforms like Safaricom (M-Pesa) and other mobile money players to create greater access to financial services. The combination of institutions like Equity Bank and Safaricom (M-Pesa) would provide true access to banking services to millions more people than either institution could do on its own. This kind of collaboration with networks of MFIs and Mobile Money Issuers could really expand access to financial services in Africa and I expect it will happen. See some of the articles I prepared earlier this year with MicroSave to learn a bit more about these opportunities.

On a Final Note, how can technology Benefit African Micro Finance Enterprises in Africa?

JOHN V. OWENSChief of PartyMicroenterprise Access to Banking Services G/F RBAP Bldg.A. Soriano Ave. Cor. Arzobispo St.Intramuros, Manila, Philippines

Wednesday, 24th February 2010 -

Friday, 26th February 2010

Lagos, Nigeria

www.Bspmediagroup.com

November 10,2009Canadawww.mobilemoneycanada.com

Banking & Mobile Payments East Africa, 2010www.aitecafrica.com24-25 February 2010the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC) Nairobi, Kenya

Date: June 2010Location: TBC

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 31

environment. Through research STRO has developed and tested pilot projects in various countries. This resulted in a range of instruments and practical approaches that are available to support private or public initiatives that want to stimulate local economies.

One of the economic models that proved to be successful is the C3 (commerce and commerce circuit) model. A C3 is a trade network build on a democratic structure where the members (consumers and businesses) have access to low cost loans and a range of commerce and communication tools.

One of the main objectives was to provide a platform that allows a company or organization to operate the system with minimal manual work. This is achieved by automatic tasks, a clear group based structure and close integration of all modules. A payment system build on Cyclos does not have to depend on the services of a single telecommunication provider and in case of currency backed systems it is possible to have partnerships with more than one bank. No specific hardware is needed and all communication is handled by standard protocols what will facilitate the implementation and roll out of the system.

The Cyclos system is build on a modular structure what offers flexibility. An organization can just enable the components based on services it wants to provide. Cyclos comes with default configurations for most common monetary models but it is possible to setup a new system from scratch. It is always possible to add new services at a later stage without having to change the existing structure. For example, an on-line banking system can be extended with SMS and credit/debit card payment services.

Cyclos has various access channels that connect to the same a real-time (on-line) transaction system. This means, for example, that loans and micro credits that are granted via the Web interface will be directly available to clients via all channels (if enabled). The access channels are all integrated part of the platform and allow internal routing. For example, a business or loan agent can send a payment request via web access and this request can be routed automatically to the SMS channel. Meanwhile the client would need to confirm the request with an SMS reply and PIN, the business can follow-up the status of the payment requests on-line at the web page.

A powerful feature in Cyclos is the e-commerce

Tell us more about the software of Cyclos and how it can benefit Africans

module. Users can publish offers and wants for products and services and search within market place page. The e-commerce module is also integrated with the access channels. For example a member can register an "interest" for a specific product or service and define criteria like location and price. When another member of the network publishes a service or product that matches the criteria of the interest, the person that registered the interest will receive an instant notification. Members themselves can define if they want to receive the notification as internal message, e-mail or SMS. In case of SMS notifications the costs can be charged automatically to the receiver account. Other types of notifications are also available. For example financial notifications such as reminders on expired loan repayment dates or the approval of new loans.

There are various ways Africans could benefit from the Cyclos platform. Local governments can reinforce the community's economy offering new forms of credit and payment services. Micro finance institutions (MFI's) could enlarge their outreach. Local businesses that receive (digital) payments from clients with micro credits can use the digital currency to trade with other companies in the network. This way the available funds can generate more local economic activity than within conventional micro finance programs. STRO developed various innovative models to increase the leverage of financial funds that are available for credit.

But in principal any organization or institute that offers payment services can make use of the platform (for example campus payment systems, consumer liability program, credit unions).

The STRO organization tries to bring the emission of money and credit back to the communities. This is much in line with the Open Source philosophy and therefore open source was a logical choice. Today few independent mobile banking providers exist. We think an open source approach will contribute to better access and greater diversity of financial services. Also, open source software in general offers better integration with third party products.

Why did you choose to publish the software open source?

To be continued.

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 32

environment. Through research STRO has developed and tested pilot projects in various countries. This resulted in a range of instruments and practical approaches that are available to support private or public initiatives that want to stimulate local economies.

One of the economic models that proved to be successful is the C3 (commerce and commerce circuit) model. A C3 is a trade network build on a democratic structure where the members (consumers and businesses) have access to low cost loans and a range of commerce and communication tools.

One of the main objectives was to provide a platform that allows a company or organization to operate the system with minimal manual work. This is achieved by automatic tasks, a clear group based structure and close integration of all modules. A payment system build on Cyclos does not have to depend on the services of a single telecommunication provider and in case of currency backed systems it is possible to have partnerships with more than one bank. No specific hardware is needed and all communication is handled by standard protocols what will facilitate the implementation and roll out of the system.

The Cyclos system is build on a modular structure what offers flexibility. An organization can just enable the components based on services it wants to provide. Cyclos comes with default configurations for most common monetary models but it is possible to setup a new system from scratch. It is always possible to add new services at a later stage without having to change the existing structure. For example, an on-line banking system can be extended with SMS and credit/debit card payment services.

Cyclos has various access channels that connect to the same a real-time (on-line) transaction system. This means, for example, that loans and micro credits that are granted via the Web interface will be directly available to clients via all channels (if enabled). The access channels are all integrated part of the platform and allow internal routing. For example, a business or loan agent can send a payment request via web access and this request can be routed automatically to the SMS channel. Meanwhile the client would need to confirm the request with an SMS reply and PIN, the business can follow-up the status of the payment requests on-line at the web page.

A powerful feature in Cyclos is the e-commerce

Tell us more about the software of Cyclos and how it can benefit Africans

module. Users can publish offers and wants for products and services and search within market place page. The e-commerce module is also integrated with the access channels. For example a member can register an "interest" for a specific product or service and define criteria like location and price. When another member of the network publishes a service or product that matches the criteria of the interest, the person that registered the interest will receive an instant notification. Members themselves can define if they want to receive the notification as internal message, e-mail or SMS. In case of SMS notifications the costs can be charged automatically to the receiver account. Other types of notifications are also available. For example financial notifications such as reminders on expired loan repayment dates or the approval of new loans.

There are various ways Africans could benefit from the Cyclos platform. Local governments can reinforce the community's economy offering new forms of credit and payment services. Micro finance institutions (MFI's) could enlarge their outreach. Local businesses that receive (digital) payments from clients with micro credits can use the digital currency to trade with other companies in the network. This way the available funds can generate more local economic activity than within conventional micro finance programs. STRO developed various innovative models to increase the leverage of financial funds that are available for credit.

But in principal any organization or institute that offers payment services can make use of the platform (for example campus payment systems, consumer liability program, credit unions).

The STRO organization tries to bring the emission of money and credit back to the communities. This is much in line with the Open Source philosophy and therefore open source was a logical choice. Today few independent mobile banking providers exist. We think an open source approach will contribute to better access and greater diversity of financial services. Also, open source software in general offers better integration with third party products.

Why did you choose to publish the software open source?

To be continued.

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 32

WASHINGTON DC & DENVER, October 30, 2009— Sixty finalists for the African Diaspora Marketplace (ADM), with proposals representing more than $22 million of Diaspora business investment to spur job creation in their native countries, were announced today by Western Union and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The ADM is a business entrepreneur program that has catalyzed economic development plans from U.S.-based African Diaspora to help 19 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, through collaboration between Western Union and USAID.

”The finalists of the ADM competition represent the best of a new class of entrepreneur – those who are investing back in their home countries to create economic opportunity and reduce poverty and unemployment in Sub-Saharan Africa,” said Alonzo Fulgham, Acting USAID Administrator. “USAID is proud to be a part of this innovative program that leverages the resources of Western Union and its Agents, Diaspora communities, and local partners in Africa to support these entrepreneurs.”

”The business leaders selected here understand the challenges facing their native countries, and they have identified solutions that work,” said Anne McCarthy, Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Western Union. “Our finalists have market-appropriate proposals that could sustain job growth and spark new business start-ups benefiting Sub-Saharan Africa.”

The finalists were chosen from a pool of 733 applicants by an independent panel of volunteer judges from business, non-governmental o r g a n i z a t i o n s , D i a s p o r a d e v e l o p m e n t organizations and academia. They represent 14 countries and a range of business plans – from agri-business such as food oil processing and fish farming to healthcare and IT service providers.

From this group of finalists, between 10-20 winners will be announced in mid-January 2010 at an event to be held at the Academy for Educational Development (AED). The ADM program will award matching grants for program winners of between $50,000-$100,000.

The ADM is funded jointly by USAID, The Western Union Company, and the Western Union

Announcement

African Diaspora Marketplace Announces 60 Finalists; Entrepreneurial Proposals Collectively Represent More Than $22 Million In Diaspora Investment in African Communities

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 35

WASHINGTON DC & DENVER, October 30, 2009— Sixty finalists for the African Diaspora Marketplace (ADM), with proposals representing more than $22 million of Diaspora business investment to spur job creation in their native countries, were announced today by Western Union and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

The ADM is a business entrepreneur program that has catalyzed economic development plans from U.S.-based African Diaspora to help 19 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, through collaboration between Western Union and USAID.

”The finalists of the ADM competition represent the best of a new class of entrepreneur – those who are investing back in their home countries to create economic opportunity and reduce poverty and unemployment in Sub-Saharan Africa,” said Alonzo Fulgham, Acting USAID Administrator. “USAID is proud to be a part of this innovative program that leverages the resources of Western Union and its Agents, Diaspora communities, and local partners in Africa to support these entrepreneurs.”

”The business leaders selected here understand the challenges facing their native countries, and they have identified solutions that work,” said Anne McCarthy, Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs, Western Union. “Our finalists have market-appropriate proposals that could sustain job growth and spark new business start-ups benefiting Sub-Saharan Africa.”

The finalists were chosen from a pool of 733 applicants by an independent panel of volunteer judges from business, non-governmental o r g a n i z a t i o n s , D i a s p o r a d e v e l o p m e n t organizations and academia. They represent 14 countries and a range of business plans – from agri-business such as food oil processing and fish farming to healthcare and IT service providers.

From this group of finalists, between 10-20 winners will be announced in mid-January 2010 at an event to be held at the Academy for Educational Development (AED). The ADM program will award matching grants for program winners of between $50,000-$100,000.

The ADM is funded jointly by USAID, The Western Union Company, and the Western Union

Announcement

African Diaspora Marketplace Announces 60 Finalists; Entrepreneurial Proposals Collectively Represent More Than $22 Million In Diaspora Investment in African Communities

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 35

Foundation, as well as through Western Union Agent Giving Circles featuring Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) in Africa and Irv Barr Management in the United States. Any organization interested in an opportunity with the A D M s h o u l d d i r e c t m e s s a g e s t o adm2009@usaid.gov.

For a list of the ADM finalists as well as information o n s t a r t i n g a b u s i n e s s , v i s i t

.

About USAID

USAID is the lead government agency providing development and humanitarian assistance to people around the world. The agency's Global Development Alliance (GDA) links U.S. foreign assistance with the resources, expertise and creativity of the private sector as well as nongovernmental organizations. Since its launch in 2001, the Global Development Alliance has changed the way U.S. international development projects are financed and implemented. By cultivating more than 900 public-private alliances with over 1,700 individual partners, it has allowed USAID to leverage an additional $9.6 billion in resources for development. For more information about USAID and its programs around the world visit . For more information on G l o b a l D e v e l o p m e n t A l l i a n c e s v i s i t

.

About the Western Union Company

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta and Pago Facil branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, as well as send payments and purchase money orders. Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta operate through a combined network of more than 400,000 Agent locations in 200 countries and territories. In 2008, The Western Union Company completed 188 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $74 billion of principal between consumers, and 412 million consumer-to-business transactions. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.

About the Western Union Foundation

www.diasporamarketplace.org

www.usaid.gov

www.usaid.gov/gda/index.html

Through Western Union's Our World, Our Family® signature program, the Western Union Foundation supports initiatives to empower individuals, families and communities through access to better education and economic opportunity. Recognized by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy in 2009, the program is a five year, $50 million commitment reflecting the efforts made by Western Union employees, Agents, and partners around the world. Since its inception, the Western Union Foundation has awarded almost $55 million in grants and disaster relief to over 1,870 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in 100 countries. For more information, visit

.

About Ecobank (www.ecobank.com)

Incorporated in Lome, Togo, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) is the parent company of the leading independent regional banking group in Africa. It currently operates in 28 African countries, namely: Benin, Burkina-Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda and Zambia. The group is also represented in France through its affiliate EBI S.A. in Paris. ETI also has a presence in Tanzania and in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where it holds licenses but is not yet operational.

ETI is listed on the stock exchanges in Lagos, Accra and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) – the BRVM. The Group is owned by more than 180,000 local and international institutional and individual shareholders. It has over 11,000 employees from 29 different countries in over 700 branches. Ecobank is a full-service bank providing wholesale, retail, investment and transaction banking services and products to governments, financial institutions, multinationals, international organizations, medium, small and micro businesses and individuals

http://foundation.westernunion.com

For More Information Contact:Lisa McConnell, Western Union, +27 11 549 3310, lisa.mcconnell@intl.westernunion.comGina Jackson, USAID, 202-712-1917, gjackson@usaid.gov Abou Kone, Ecobank, +228 221 03 03, abokone@ecobank.com

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 36

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

THANK YOU FOR MAKING US

Number OneIN

AFRICA

Foundation, as well as through Western Union Agent Giving Circles featuring Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) in Africa and Irv Barr Management in the United States. Any organization interested in an opportunity with the A D M s h o u l d d i r e c t m e s s a g e s t o adm2009@usaid.gov.

For a list of the ADM finalists as well as information o n s t a r t i n g a b u s i n e s s , v i s i t

.

About USAID

USAID is the lead government agency providing development and humanitarian assistance to people around the world. The agency's Global Development Alliance (GDA) links U.S. foreign assistance with the resources, expertise and creativity of the private sector as well as nongovernmental organizations. Since its launch in 2001, the Global Development Alliance has changed the way U.S. international development projects are financed and implemented. By cultivating more than 900 public-private alliances with over 1,700 individual partners, it has allowed USAID to leverage an additional $9.6 billion in resources for development. For more information about USAID and its programs around the world visit . For more information on G l o b a l D e v e l o p m e n t A l l i a n c e s v i s i t

.

About the Western Union Company

The Western Union Company (NYSE: WU) is a leader in global payment services. Together with its Vigo, Orlandi Valuta and Pago Facil branded payment services, Western Union provides consumers with fast, reliable and convenient ways to send and receive money around the world, as well as send payments and purchase money orders. Western Union, Vigo and Orlandi Valuta operate through a combined network of more than 400,000 Agent locations in 200 countries and territories. In 2008, The Western Union Company completed 188 million consumer-to-consumer transactions worldwide, moving $74 billion of principal between consumers, and 412 million consumer-to-business transactions. For more information, visit www.westernunion.com.

About the Western Union Foundation

www.diasporamarketplace.org

www.usaid.gov

www.usaid.gov/gda/index.html

Through Western Union's Our World, Our Family® signature program, the Western Union Foundation supports initiatives to empower individuals, families and communities through access to better education and economic opportunity. Recognized by the Committee Encouraging Corporate Philanthropy in 2009, the program is a five year, $50 million commitment reflecting the efforts made by Western Union employees, Agents, and partners around the world. Since its inception, the Western Union Foundation has awarded almost $55 million in grants and disaster relief to over 1,870 nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in 100 countries. For more information, visit

.

About Ecobank (www.ecobank.com)

Incorporated in Lome, Togo, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated (ETI) is the parent company of the leading independent regional banking group in Africa. It currently operates in 28 African countries, namely: Benin, Burkina-Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Congo-Brazzaville, Côte d'Ivoire, Democratic Republic of Congo, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Sao Tome and Principe, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Togo, Uganda and Zambia. The group is also represented in France through its affiliate EBI S.A. in Paris. ETI also has a presence in Tanzania and in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, where it holds licenses but is not yet operational.

ETI is listed on the stock exchanges in Lagos, Accra and the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) – the BRVM. The Group is owned by more than 180,000 local and international institutional and individual shareholders. It has over 11,000 employees from 29 different countries in over 700 branches. Ecobank is a full-service bank providing wholesale, retail, investment and transaction banking services and products to governments, financial institutions, multinationals, international organizations, medium, small and micro businesses and individuals

http://foundation.westernunion.com

For More Information Contact:Lisa McConnell, Western Union, +27 11 549 3310, lisa.mcconnell@intl.westernunion.comGina Jackson, USAID, 202-712-1917, gjackson@usaid.gov Abou Kone, Ecobank, +228 221 03 03, abokone@ecobank.com

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com NOVEMBER 2009 | 36

www.mobilemoneyafrica.com

THANK YOU FOR MAKING US

Number OneIN

AFRICA