[The Monitor] Zain customers will be relieved of the hassle of moving with huge sums of money, as the company today, starts a mobile commerce service dubbed Zap.
Zap will enable Zain subscribers to use their phone handsets to transfer money, pay their bills, top up airtime and buy goods without physically using cash.
The service provides customers with increased security and flexibility, there-by reducing the need to carry cash and ensuring payments between friends, family, business partners and merchants remain secure and timely.
"The Bank of Uganda allowed Zain to use the full suite of mobile commerce services and Zain partnered with Standard Chartered Bank to hold a settlement account insuring all ZAP money," Yesse Oenga, Zain's managing director, said.
Zap is a 2009 Global Telecom Business (GTB) award winner, for innovation in mobile commerce.
Mr George Buza, Zain's marketing manager Mobile Data Multimedia and Messaging, said Zap, a 24-hour-seven-days service, is a phenomenal venture which goes beyond basic money transfer.
"This service is a revolution that has introduced debit and credit card services to the ordinary Ugandan, where one has to use a password for each transaction and the service is protected through a state-of-the-art security platform," Mr Buza said.
To register and use the service, he added, one needs to fill in two copies of application forms at any Zain Zap agent outlet. One copy will be retained by the agent and another by the customer.
Once the Zain sim-card is validated, the account will be automatically initiated to transact business.
"With this service we are extending the reach of banks to areas where they do not exist and the service is interactive too as the customer gets free advice," Mr Buza said.
Currently, the company has registered a network of over 600 Zain Zap agents countrywide.
Zain is currently recruiting more agents. To become one, the company must be properly registered, have an address and a minimum cash balance of not less than Shs12.5 million on which they will receive the virtual money.
Zain has also signed partnerships with Western Union to enable this service reach regions beyond Zain's network.
"Customers will be paying very minimal fee of Shs250 for the service regardless of how much money one is transferring," he said.
The roll-out of this service will be phased and Zain subscribers will be able transfer money securely to friends and family across the country in addition to topping up airtime and paying for goods and services.
Later phases will see Zain customers enabled to pay school fees and utility bills as well as managing their personal bank accounts using their handsets.
Customers will also soon be able to transfer funds directly between bank accounts from the convenience of their handset.
The service, already operational in Tanzania and Kenya, is expected to grow into a regional ZAP one-network service.
Zain's Mobile Money Transfer Service for Launch Today
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