Orange telecom and Ecobank launch joint money transfer service in Africa

By Godfrey Olukya 5-2-2015 

Orange telecommunications company and pan-African banking group ‘
Ecobank’ have rolled out a service that will enable Orange Money
subscribers who also have bank accounts with Ecobank to transfer money
between their respective accounts.

A statement by Orange telecom and Ecobank said that the service has
already been launched in Mali and will be rolled-out in several other
African countries, including Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea Conakry,
Niger, Senegal and the Democratic Republic of the Congo, during the
first half of 2015.

The partnership aims to facilitate money transfers for both Ecobank
and Orange customers by offering them the possibility of topping up
their Orange Money e-wallet from their bank account, and vice versa.
Customers can use their mobile phones to securely transfer money at
any time without the need to go to a distribution point or to have
physical cash.

The two companies have launched the service following the signature of
a memorandum of understanding. The partnership comes as part of a
joint strategy to enhance mobile financial services and to increase
access to banking services across Africa.

In sub-Saharan Africa, where less than 24 percent of the population
has a bank account and over 60 percent have a mobile phone, Orange
Money offers easy-to-use mobile financial services that allow
transactions to be made remotely and securely, avoiding the need to
carry money around. With Orange Money, customers can transfer money
from their mobile phones to any other customer in the country and, in
some countries, internationally. They can also pay their water,
electricity and television bills and top up their telephone airtime
remotely. Depending on the country, they may also benefit from savings
and insurance solutions.

This type of partnership with banks allows a customer to link a bank
account with his or her Orange Money account. Notably, it is a service
that facilitates exchanges between persons with bank accounts and
those without. Ecobank customers can also view bank account balance
and obtain mini-statements by SMS via the service.

With more than 12 million customers and 4.5 billion euros exchanged in
13 countries in 2014, Orange Money has delivered considerable success.

Laurent Paillassot, Deputy Chief Executive Officer of Orange in charge
of Customer Experience and Mobile Banking, said: “This partnership
between Orange and Ecobank will further enrich customer experience. By
facilitating exchanges between Ecobank and Orange Money accounts, our
customers will be able to conduct financial transactions quickly and
in complete security, bringing them the best of both worlds. We want
to offer this service wherever it makes sense.”

Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank’s Group Executive in charge of Domestic
Banking, said “This roll-out further demonstrates Ecobank’s commitment
to make branchless banking a reality by activating multiple service
channels in every country in which we operate. Our unique pan-African
footprint also enables us to be at the forefront of efforts to develop
the market for cross-border mobile financial services in Africa.”

END