Express money transactions have gained popularity among many African countries. People are tired of the long queues in banks and through technology, they are now embracing the digital wave. According to financial inclusion survey by the world bank in 2017, 21% of adults had mobile money accounts and has grown over the years. The survey also had Africa as a region with the most usage of mobile banking in the world.
The mobile banking initiative in Africa has helped many people to access banking services from the comfort of their homes. The ancient form of banking was scarce due to poor infrastructure and lack of know-how. The increase in the mobile banking industry in Africa has had mobile phone companies playing a major role in providing affordable devices. Companies like Tecno and Ininix has taken Africa by storm with their various series of phones.
Kenya being the pioneer of mobile wallet, the number of users has increased rapidly. Safaricom introduced MPESA which was a major invention in network providers. The likes of Burundi, Rwanda, Uganda followed with bringing in the banking services through MTN. Loans and other services have been made accessible from any part of the region by only the use of identification card and customers’ banking history. In Kenya for instance, FULIZA by Safaricom was introduced in the new year 2019 and in one weeks time, it had already 8 billion of borrowed loans. This indicates that the usage of mobile banking is indeed rising day by day.
With all the positive impact of transforming lives in the region, mobile banking has created a home for fraudsters. From the hackers to con men, fraud has become a norm in the rising banking industry and is a major blow to the companies and communities. Some banks opened up about losing millions of shillings to fraudsters who hacked into their systems and those with fake documents. The governments and the African leadership has condemned these acts of fraud and the law has been established to curb perpetrators.
With no doubt, the banks and the network providers are still excelling even with the challenges existing. Other ancient banks have resorted to providing mobile banking because that is the direction every banking institution is moving to.