RBZ to guide growth in mobile banking

Published: 20 March 2014

Mobile banking has grown phenomenally due to a 104 percent growth in mobile penetration and the registration of over 7 000 mobile agents across the country, the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe has revealed.

Speaking at the world consumer rights celebrations held in Harare on Monday RBZ National payment systems representative, Mr William Manimanzi said 119 million transactions were effected through mobile banking last year and the RBZ was working on a stable payment system to support transactions.

"We want to guide electronic payments and ensure that there is a stable payment system which is efficient and effective," he said.

He added that there was a need for legislation to govern e-transactions to protect the consumers.

Mr Manimanzi added that there should be no competition between mobile service providers and banks but that money should circulate within the formal banking system and the two should work towards achieving the same goal of improving the country’s economy.

Telecel’s mobile financial services director Mr Nkosinathi Ncube said they were not in competition with the banks but were complementing them.

"As mobile network operators, we are not banks but we are just a channel that offers banking services through a cell phone and whatever we do, the money eventually goes to the bank," he said.

The Central Bank of Zimbabwe recently imposed a 5 percent tax on the fees charged to effect mobile money transactions such as cash transfers, cellular phone payments and utility bill payments after lobbying by the Bankers Association of Zimbabwe, a non-profit organization of member banks.

The new regulation subjects mobile money platforms to the same tax charged on automated teller machine (ATM) and point-of-sale (POS) transactions.
- The Herald

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