Ecobank on Tuesday announced a ten-year partnership with MasterCard for the issuance of debit cards to the bank’s customers in Nigeria.
The deal follows a licensing agreement between Ecobank Group and MasterCard in January 2014 to provide MasterCard payment solutions in 28 sub-Saharan African nations.
This partnership, however, will see customers in Nigeria continue to leverage the security and convenience of electronic payments, versus cash and other transactions forms.
“Electronic payment platforms provide a cost-effective way to improve financial inclusion in Africa, which is at the core of the vision of Ecobank,” observed Patrick Akinwuntan, Ecobank’s group executive director responsible for domestic banking.
“In teaming up with Mastercard, we are providing our customers with a “best of breed” solution, combining local market knowledge and proven technological expertise with the economies of scale that derive from access to the leading pan-African payments platform”.
Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy is currently on a drive to accelerate the adoption of electronic payments, with various stakeholders, including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), launching consumer education and awareness campaigns. Nigerian banks, for example, working with the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement Scheme (NIBSS), have commenced a consumer awareness campaign to explain the benefits of electronic payment platforms, with the aim of increasing their acceptance.
“In Nigeria, increased urbanisation, a growing labour force and the rise of online shopping are fuelling demand for more convenient payments,” added Jibril Aku, managing director of Ecobank Nigeria.
“Using electronic payments to penetrate the country’s unbanked population of nearly 80 million also represents a market with huge, untapped potential.”
Speaking in the same vein, Daniel Monehin, division president, sub-Saharan Africa, MasterCard, commented: “We envisage a world beyond cash in Nigeria and Africa, where consumers can enjoy the security, efficiency and convenience of electronic payments”.
BEN UZOR JR
