Standard Chartered Bank and Airtel Africa have today announced a partnership aimed at promoting financial inclusion across African key markets by providing customers with increased access to mobile financial services.
The collaboration will see Standard Chartered Bank and Airtel Africa work together to co-create new and innovative products aimed at enhancing the accessibility of financial services and, serve the people across Africa better.
Commenting on the collaboration, said Sunil Kaushal, Standard Chartered Regional CEO, Africa, and Middle East said; “By collaborating with innovative organisations like Airtel Africa, we are accelerating our mobile and digital-led strategy to provide best in class financial services to Africa. Over the past year, Standard Chartered has rapidly launched digital banks across 9 countries on the continent, allowing our customers to enjoy seamless services from the safety of their homes even during the peak of the pandemic. This partnership will further enhance the ability of our customers to manage and move money safely and securely and create market-leading financial solutions across countries.”
The alliance will also help Standard Chartered’s corporate to make rapid and secure bulk disbursements, such as payroll payments, directly into the Airtel Money customers’ wallet, reducing the risks associated with travelling long distances for cash payments and instead use any Airtel Money agent, kiosk, or branch to cash-out their funds.
dfcu Bank and Monitor Publications Crown Season 7 Rising Woman Champions, Celebrating Uganda’s Top Women EntrepreneursThe collaboration is part of Standard Chartered’s milestone in further extending its reach and enhancing its unique product offerings. The bank, by partnering with mobile wallet providers, is expanding its network into markets where mobile wallets are prevalent, offering solutions that enable corporate and institutional clients to leverage the opportunities presented by mobile money, and enable efficient, scalable e-commerce and m-commerce solutions.
Through this collaboration, Airtel Money’s customers will be able to make real-time online deposits and withdrawals. Airtel customers will also be able to receive international money transfers directly to their wallets and access savings products, amongst other services.
“Our relationship with Standard Chartered boosts financial inclusion across the continent, giving millions of people access to valuable banking services. We continue to invest heavily in cashing in and cashing out locations for our customers and increase our distribution. This means that our customers can now send or receive digital payments via Standard Chartered Bank directly to their mobile phones, as well as cash-out their funds at our exclusive kiosks and branches at their convenience. This highlights Airtel Africa’s commitment to providing affordable, innovative, best-in-class solutions to enhance the daily lives of our customers,” said Raghunath Mandava, CEO, Airtel Africa.
