Telecel Zimbabwe has launched its mobile money transfer service dubbed telecash in a move that will see its subscribers send or receive money via their mobile phones to their friends and family to any network in the country, pay utility bills and use it for payments of goods and services.
“We have associated ourselves with the best in the industry,” said Telecel Zimbabwe chief commercial officer Ashraf El Guindy adding that Telecel was coming to the market with a strong product. He said the company had partnered with some of the best players in the industry to come up with telecash.
Telecel’s technical partner for telecash was Obopay while Afrasia, CBZ and ZimSwitch, were its banking partners.
With over 1600 agents on the network at launch, telecash is Africa’s best mobile money platform due to its interoperability, which enabled subscribers to send money to any other network and to banks, its financial inclusivity, its simplicity and ease of use and its bulk payment facility, which made it possible for bulk payments, such as salary payments, to be made from the comfort of one’s office.
Telecel’s network covers 85 percent of the country’s population and the firm said telecash will be available for all its users.
To transact a registered telecash subscriber simply had to dial *888#, which would result in a menu appearing on the mobile phone screen, from which the type of transaction required could be selected. Subscribers can register for telecash at any Telecel office, with selected telecash agents or with telecash ambassadors, who will be found roaming the streets for the convenience of customers wishing to sign on. All that is needed to register is one’s identity card, driver’s licence or passport and a copy of it. Registration is fast, almost instant.
Once registered the subscriber is sent a message with an activation number. To activate the telecash account, the subscriber dials*888#, enters the activation number when requested and enters a personal identification number (PIN) that will be used to conduct all transactions.
Telecel promises value and and security to all the users of telecash, which has been fully audited by KPMG and approved by the country’s central bank.