Bank of Ghana (BoG) has given authorisation to GN Bank to introduce mobile money to the public.
The BoG authorisation paves the way for the bank to introduce this unique service which combines mobile money with mobile banking.
This was disclosed to Today in an exclusive interview by the General Manager (GM), Micro Enterprise, GN Bank, Kofi Asamoah Siaw.
GN Mobile Money, he explained, is unique because it is available on all networks which means that every mobile phone subscriber or user can open an e-account or wallet with GN Bank.
He said the service is available on both android and feature (yam) phones by dialing *712#.
“A customer of GN Mobile Money is able to save money, transfer money, pay bills and buy airtime for all networks from their mobile phone,” he disclosed.
In addition, customers of GN Bank are able to have remote access to their bank accounts via the mobile money service to check their bank account balances, view mini statements and transfer money from one account to the other.
With this unique product, GN Bank has made it possible for increased financial inclusion by welcoming every mobile phone user to have a wallet on their phones.
An elated Mr. Asamoah Siaw told Today that his outfit received the central bank’s approval letter on Tuesday, June 27, 2017.
According to him, GN Mobile Money (GNMM) is a mobile money and mobile banking platform which allows mobile phone subscribers the opportunity to save money on their mobile phones.
“…at the same time it gives them a remote access to their bank accounts,” he further explained.
This, he indicated, will enable subscribers transact business conveniently at anytime, any day, anywhere.
On the registration for the service, he revealed that the process was very “simple.”
“All you need to do is to dial the access code:*712#. That is your gateway to access this exciting mobile money platform. So you can dial our access code [*712#] using any of the networks and immediately after that what comes onto the screen of your phone is pre-registration process which will be followed by your initial pin which will be delivered to you by SMS. After that, to be able to enjoy the service, you must visit the nearest GN Bank office for a designated agent to help you complete your registration process, KYC, and; from there you will get an SMS to confirm that your account/wallet has been opened and from then you can enjoy the service.
For GN Bank customers, Mr. Asamoah Siaw revealed that they will have the added advantage of linking up their accounts to the service.
This, he went on to add, will give such a subscriber remote access to his/her bank account. This means that such a person can view his/her mini statement, check balances and actually use the GN mobile money platform to do transaction from one bank account to the other.”
“The interesting thing about our product (GN Mobile Money) is that hitherto with all the other mobile money platforms you are restricted to a particular Sim card that you are using, but with GNMM it is opened to subscribers of the different networks currently operating in the country.”
The other distinguishing feature, he disclosed, is that one can easily also buy airtime for him/herself and his/her relatives and friends for all the networks.
“So if you need to buy Vodafone airtime, MTN airtime, tiGO airtime, Glo or Expresso you can use your funds in the GN Mobile Wallet for all these airtimes,” he revealed.
Mr. Asamoah Siaw said one can also use the GNMM remotely to access his/her bank account, “and operate it as if he/she is right in the banking hall.”
“…so you can make payments from your bank account to another bank account of yours; you can also pay some other person who is your supplier, or your relative or somebody who benefits from you,” he pointed out.
When asked about the charges for transacting business using the GNMM platform, Mr. Asamoah Siaw minced no words in asserting that “the pricing is very cheap.”
“It is a flat rate irrespective of the amount you are transacting in business terms. So it is a more convenient way that we are bringing banking to the doorstep of the ordinary person,” he added.
“So, for example, if you register for GN Mobile Money you will have a wallet which will work like a bank account,” he said.
Another significant feature of GN Mobile Money, Mr. Asamoah Siaw said, is that because GN Bank is everywhere, buying electronic value and exchanging and working with agents all over the country will also not be a problem.
“…so it is a new thing in town; no financial institution in Ghana is doing this. GN Bank is the first to introduce a wallet system—it is the first to combine mobile money with mobile banking.”
In this regard, Mr. Asamoah Siaw gave the assurance that GN Bank will do more by integrating international money transfer to various destinations so that it will allow subscribers to transfer and receive money via GN Mobile Money.”
On the question of GN Mobile Money vendors, the GM, micro enterprise, GN Bank said aside from they having their own vendors, they will also engage vendors of the telecom companies to drive their agenda.
“…and also on our platform [GNMM] one of the unique things is that they are not just going to be able to pay money, receive money and transfer money on behalf of people, they are also going to have an opportunity to sell airtime. So we are going to give them an additional business for them to do to earn income…,” he said.
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