DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania and NAIROBI, Kenya and BARCELONA, February 18
/PRNewswire/ --
- Zain launches Zap, the Most Comprehensive Service Enabling Customers to
Access Their Money Faster and More Conveniently.
- Reshaping the Future of Banking in Africa, the Service Will be
Available to Over 100 Million People in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda
Leading mobile telecommunications provider Zain today announced plans to
bring mobile banking to over 100 million people in East Africa with the
launch of its new service, Zap.
Providing the most comprehensive and accessible package of mobile banking
features currently available on the African continent, Zap will be initially
available in Kenya and Tanzania prior to launch in Uganda. Zap represents the
most comprehensive mobile banking service ever launched and will provide
millions of people with access to banking for the very first time.
Zain is partnering with leading international and regional banks
including Citigroup and Standard Chartered to launch Zap, which will allow
Zain customers in the three countries to use their mobile phone to:
- Pay bills and pay for goods and services
- Receive money and send money to friends and family
- Send and receive money to the bank accounts
- Withdraw cash
- Top up their own airtime account or top up someone else's
- Send airtime to Zain customers in East Africa
- Manage their bank accounts
The Zap service will also be included as part of Zain's pioneering One
Network service, meaning that customers will be able to send airtime to other
Zain customers across Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. One Network allows
travelling customers to move across geographic borders without roaming
surcharges, recharge their mobile phones with locally purchased top up cards
and receive calls for free.
Dr. Saad Al Barrak, Zain Group's Chief Executive Officer said: "The
launch of Zap represents the latest chapter in our work to push the
boundaries of mobile communications. For any market in the world, the
combination of services we are providing would be exciting; but when set in
an African context, the implications are especially profound."
He further added "With a potential customer base of over 100 million
people in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, many of whom have never had access to
formal financial services, we believe Zap will reshape the future of banking
in Africa."
Zap will provide customers with increased security and flexibility,
reducing the need to carry cash and ensuring payments between friends and
family remain secure. A password is needed for each transaction and the
service is protected through a state-of-the-art security application.
Customers will also benefit from being able to access the service 24 hours a
day, seven days a week through their handset, providing the convenience of
accessing cash anytime, anywhere.
Zain customers can sign-up for free for the new Zap banking and payment
services by completing an application form and handing it over to registered
Zain agents in tens of thousands of villages, towns and cities across East
Africa. Zain will then provide the customer with a mobile wallet, which will
allow them to use their mobile phone in much the same way as a bank account
debit card and manage their money through their handset. The service is
supported on all handsets including ultra low cost handsets (ULCH) which Zain
is successfully rolling out across the continent.
Zain and its partners are confident that Zap will increase access to
banking services in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, where formal banking services
are largely restricted to urban populations. Eighty per cent of Kenya's(1)
and ninety-five per cent of Tanzania's and Uganda's populations(2) do not
currently have access to banking services.
Zain, in partnership with Citigroup and Standard Chartered Bank, is
ensuring that the services meet all the required in-country banking
regulations as stipulated by the central banks for the launch of Zap
services. In addition Zain's banking partners will facilitate payments and
settlement processes in accordance with the terms and conditions agreed with
the in country banking regulations.
Standard Chartered Bank's Area Head of Consumer Banking - East Africa,
Kariuki Ngari said: "We are extremely excited to be partnering with Zain on
this ground-breaking initiative. M-commerce has the potential to transform
banking in Africa and will help overcome many of the obstacles presented by
providing banking services to remote and rural communities. We're proud to be
working with Zain at the forefront of this mobile banking revolution."
Sridhar Srinivasan, Global Transaction Services Head, Sub-Saharan Africa,
Citi, said: "We are proud to be part of this initiative that will transform
the banking environment in Tanzania allowing people to access financial
services everywhere. The Zap offering is a true innovation, extending the
reach of financial services to every corner of this country and stimulating
the payments system through accessible mobile technology. Our successful
partnership with Zain enabling this groundbreaking service is a great
testament of our commitment to the economic development of the countries
where we operate, by promoting financial inclusion."
Chris Gabriel, CEO Zain Africa said: "Research has shown that m-banking
and m-payments can help lower the transaction costs of money transfer,
increase the flow of money by making it easier to send smaller amounts and
introduce those without bank accounts to a means of secure financial
management. By enabling people to use their mobile phones as mobile wallets,
we hope to deliver lasting benefits not just for our customers, but also for
the economies of Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda."
Zain plans to roll-out the enhanced Zap service to the rest of its
African and Middle East network following the East Africa launch in Kenya,
Tanzania and Uganda. During a three month trial phase the service was used by
several international companies including Coca Cola who used it to pay their
dealers in Tanzania.
By using Zap millions of customers will be able to pay their electricity
bills in Kenya and Tanzania, while Zain also plans to increase the number of
services that can be paid for using Zap as part of its aim to transform the
use of money in the Africa.
As part of its corporate social responsibility programme Zain is funding
communication in several remote rural areas which have been designated
Millennium Villages across Africa. Using Zap, Zain customers and members of
the public will be able to make donations to fund the Millennium Villages
project. More than 400,000 people live in the Millennium Villages and the
project is investing in them and their communities towards finding a
sustainable end to extreme poverty. Members of the public around the world
will be able to make donations using Causes on Facebook and Zap to the
Millennium Villages. Causes leverages online social networking for offline
social change. More than 30 million people around the world use Causes to
have an impact on the issues that matter most to them, making it the world's
largest platform for philanthropy and civic engagement.
Zain was the first mobile company to introduce phone-to-phone airtime
credit transfer service in 2005 (Me2U). Currently over US$10 million worth of
airtime transfers take place in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda each month.
Zain is currently the fourth largest mobile network in the world in terms
of geographic presence, with a footprint in 22 countries spread across the
Middle East and Africa and providing mobile voice and data services to over
60 million active customers.
Notes to editors
About Zain
Zain is a leading emerging markets player in the field of
telecommunications aiming to become one of the top ten mobile operators in
the world by 2011. Zain was established in 1983 in Kuwait as the region's
first mobile operator. Since 2003, it has grown significantly becoming the
4th largest mobile network in the world in terms of geographic presence with
a footprint in 22 countries spread across the Middle East and Africa
providing mobile voice and data services to over 60 million active customers.
Zain operates in the following countries: Bahrain, Burkina Faso, Chad,
the Republic of the Congo, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon,
Ghana, Iraq, Jordan, Kenya, Kuwait, Malawi, Madagascar, Niger, Nigeria, Saudi
Arabia, Sierra Leone, Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia. In Lebanon, the
company manages the network on behalf of the government operating as
mtc-touch.
The Zain brand is wholly owned by Mobile Telecommunications Company KSC,
which is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange (Stock ticker: ZAIN). For more
information, please visit http://www.zain.com or email info@zain.com.
About Standard Chartered
Standard Chartered PLC, listed on both London and Hong Kong stock
exchanges, ranks among the top 25 companies in the FTSE-100 by market
capitalisation. The London-headquartered Group has operated for over 150
years in some of the world's most dynamic markets, leading the way in Asia,
Africa and the Middle East. Its income and profits have more than doubled
over the last five years primarily as a result of organic growth and
supplemented by acquisitions.
Standard Chartered aspires to be the best international bank for its
customers across its markets. The Bank derives more than 90 per cent of its
operating income and profits from Asia, Africa and the Middle East, generated
from its Wholesale and Consumer Banking businesses. The Group has around
1,750 branches and outlets located in over 70 countries. The extraordinary
growth of its markets and businesses creates exciting and challenging
international career opportunities.
Leading by example to be the right partner for its stakeholders, the
Group is committed to building a sustainable business over the long term and
is trusted worldwide for upholding high standards of corporate governance,
social responsibility, environmental protection and employee diversity. It
employs 75,000 people, nearly half of whom are women. The Group's employees
are of 115 nationalities, of which 60 are represented among senior management.
For more information, please visit: http://www.standardchartered.com.
About Citigroup
Global Transaction Services, a division of Citi's Institutional Clients
Group, offers integrated cash management, trade, and securities and fund
services to multinational corporations, financial institutions and public
sector organizations around the world. With a network that spans more than
140 countries, Citi's Global Transaction Services supports over 65,000
clients. As of the 4th quarter of 2008, it held on average $292 billion in
liability balances and $10.7 trillion in assets under custody.
Citi, the leading global financial services company, has some 200 million
customer accounts and does business in more than 100 countries, providing
consumers, corporations, governments and institutions with a broad range of
financial products and services, including consumer banking and credit,
corporate and investment banking, securities brokerage, and wealth
management. Citi's major brand names include Citibank, CitiFinancial,
Primerica, Smith Barney, Banamex, and Nikko. Additional information may be
found at www.citigroup.com or http://www.citi.com .
About Causes on Facebook
Causes leverages online social networking for offline social change. More
than 30 million people use Causes to have an impact on the issues that matter
most to them, making it the world's largest platform for philanthropy and
civic engagement. A cause is a user-created advocacy group within Facebook
that gives people tools for building community and taking collective action.
Cause members stay informed and engage with other members through the Wall,
discussion board, and media board. They also take action for their cause by
recruiting, donating, fundraising, and signing and promoting petitions.
---------------------------------
(1) Source: 'Why m-banking and m-payments is potentially transformational
and is a key tool in poverty alleviation, SJB Gamos 2006'
(2) Source: Commonwealth Finance Ministers Meeting 'Banking the Unbanked'
report
For more information, please contact: Mwambu Wanendeya; Communications
Director - Africa, Zain Group, Mwambu.wanendeya@zain.com or info@zain.com
