Following the evolution of Payment Service Banks, which has seen mobile telecom operators in Nigeria delve into financial services, MTN has kicked off its MTN MoMo.
The MTN MoMo, a commercial payment service bank that the telecom giant started a few years back, finally commenced operation on Thursday after series of trials and approvals from the central bank.
The Central Bank Nigeria (CBN) granted approval to MTN’s fintech in 2021. The company carried out a successful pilot service starting on the 16th of May, 2020, aligning it with the launch of MTN’s GSM operations on the 16th of May 2001 and the listing by introduction on the Nigerian Exchange Limited on the 16th of May 2019. The pilot phase took place across cities in Nigeria.
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The PSB already boasts of an expansive agent network of over 166,000 active agents and a digitized partnership infrastructure, poised to provide a wide range of financial service products to millions of unbanked and underserved Nigerians.
MTN CEO, Karl Toriola, said the launch of MTN MoMo will boost financial inclusion in Nigeria.
“We are grateful to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) for their support and guidance through the process.
“This is an important milestone for MTN Nigeria in our mission to support the government’s drive towards financial inclusion in Nigeria. Not just for those in urban centres and markets, but also people in the rural and remote areas of the country who remain excluded from the financial system,” he said.
MTN has entered into a partnership with Africa’s largest fintech company, Flutterwave, to broaden payment penetration in Africa. This means, MTN MoMo, having established operations in other African countries, stands a chance to compete in Africa’s burgeoning fintech ecosystem.
MoMo PSB CEO, Usoro Usoro said they will be working with other players in the payment industry to expand MoMo services nationwide.
“Providing easy to use, accessible and affordable financial services to all Nigerians is essential to executing the CBN’s financial inclusion strategy and the digital inclusion agenda of the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy. We look forward to playing our part and are excited about the opportunities to partner with relevant institutions across various sectors to co-create and expand access nationwide,” he said.
This has been a long time coming for the largest mobile telecoms company in Africa. Three banks – Hope PSB, Money Master PSB and 9PSB – got their final approvals in August 2020 and have since commenced operations
The PSB initiative was introduced by CBN in 2019 as a measure to increase financial inclusion in the country particularly in rural areas. According to the CBN, a major objective for the establishment of PSBs is to leverage mobile and digital platforms to enhance financial inclusion in rural areas, especially the underserved parts. This is expected to be achieved by increasing access to deposit products, payments and remittance services to small/micro businesses and low income households.