United Bank for Africa (UBA) has further enhanced contactless banking by introducing features that allow ‘group transfer’ and ‘transfer to telephone number’ on the refreshed version of its mobile app.
The bank’s group head, digital banking Mr. Sampson Aneke, who disclosed this during a virtual media conference with involved journalists across Africa explained that the group transfer feature was introduced to empower micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs).
He also said the feature that allows transfer to telephone numbers is to enhance financial inclusion across Africa in view of the challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
He further said the ‘group transfer’ option allows users to create groups, save members and transfer funds to up to 100 members at the same time.
“With this option, the user can do a single lump sum debit and multiple credits to beneficiaries irrespective of banks where their accounts are domiciled,” he said, adding that this makes the refreshed UBA mobile app, the first app in Africa to be able to pay salaries, thus addressing a major need in the MSME space,” he said.
He projected that the COVID-19 pandemic would hasten digital banking penetration as well as financial inclusion across the continent.
“We are pushing services to what we call Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and these are for sustainability. Banks that would survive in the coming days would mean that the more BYOD you do, the more are ready to survive.
“We are taking our services to the devices that customers hold themselves. You would be happier to use the device you came out with from your home to transact than shared facilities.”
“We are taking services to the devices that customers hold themselves. You would be happier to use the device you came out with from your home to transact than shared facilities.
“We are thinking of voice banking across various channels, we are thinking of image withdrawals where we can just scan your image and you can withdraw. So some of the things that would replace POS, some are already here while some are still in the making like QR code we are already in the current app, so you wouldn’t need POS.
“We are making QR code so easy so that you can on your app the merchant to like and use regularly,” he added.
In his remarks, the group head, consumer and retail banking, Mr. Jude Anele said: “The era of people going to ATMs to punch keys, slotting cards at PoS terminals where you need to use your fingers to punch the buttons is almost going because of health concerns.
“Most of the transmission you might get and other aliment would come from such. So, what would gain ground is contactless payment system where you don’t have to make contact to be able to pay.”
He added: “If you go to countries like Kenya and most parts of East and central Africa, you would find that while financial inclusion is deepening over there is because of the spread and depth at which financial technology and mobile payments has gone in those countries.
“I believe that what COVID-19 has done for Africa, from a positive perspective is that it would actually hasten the adoption of digital banking which is actually the most cost-effective way to reach the unbanked.”
Furthermore, he said: “What would take effect now and in the near future in payments in banks would largely be contactless payments. And contactless payments would happen largely around person to person transfers, USSD and that would include many people.”
