Airtel Money is to be offered across nine African countries
Telecommunications services provider Bharti Airtel has partnered with African bank Ecobank Transnational to offer Airtel Money in nine African countries, allowing customers to access mobile financial services. They will be able to make Airtel Money deposits and withdrawals at Ecobank branches, pay utility bills and make transfers as well as check account balances in real time.
Seven countries – Burkina Faso, Chad, Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Niger, Zambia and Kenya- already have this service while two – Gabon and Sierra Leone – are due to get it later this month.
According to Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank’s Group Executive Director, Domestic Bank: “Ecobank is committed to bringing financial services to all Africans including the unbanked and under banked through collaboration with major partner-Telcos like Airtel. All that is required to enjoy this service is an Ecobank account and an Airtel line registered on Airtel Money in markets where regulatory approvals are in place”.
Chidi Okpala, the Director of Airtel Money Africa, said: “This partnership is a further demonstration of Airtel Africa’s commitment to provide affordable, simple and innovative solutions for our consumers across Africa.”
“At Airtel, we will continue to offer locally relevant M-Commerce solutions with more partners like Ecobank in order to enhance the daily lives of our customers.”
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