Africa: Banks and telcos mobilise for money

There’s no doubt mobile money is Africa’s future, but who is best equipped to benefit most: the telcos with their networks, or the banks with their products and service? And why are they fighting when they could be cooperating?

In September, the Communications Authority of Kenya (CA) made a decision that could transform the country’s mobile money industry forever. The CA gave Equity Bank, Kenya’s second largest bank by assets, permission to roll out Thin Sim, a new sim-card mobile banking product with Indian telecoms company Bharti Airtel. Equity’s subsidiary Finserve is trialling the product on a one-year pilot to make sure it is secure.

Thin Sim is an ultra-thin sim card that mobile phone owners will be able to put on top of their existing sim-card.

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