Equity Bank has officially launched its Network Operator (MVNOs) strategy and will unveil its roll out plan by July 2014.
The Bank has hailed their MVNO as the ‘next big thing’: Equity 3.0. The Equity MVNO accords Equity Bank the opportunity to continue its mission of furthering financial inclusion and innovative service offerings for all Kenyans by presenting their financial services offering on to a single platform which will make banking services more accessible, flexible convenient and more affordable.
Meanwhile, Equity has said it has developed a strategic partnership with Airtel which will support Equity’s delivery of MVNO services without the capital investment required by traditional mobile operators. These lower costs will be passed onto Equity Bank members via innovative, affordable, next generation products and services. “New skills combined with new systems and cutting edge innovation will yield immense benefits that we will pass to our members,” says Dr. James Mwangi, CEO of Equity Bank Group, “In this venture of enhancing our mobile banking offering, we are, as always, driven by our focus of making financial services convenient, accessible, affordable and inclusive.”
As the host and partner operator for Equity Bank, Airtel said it is delighted to be the mobile operator that is pioneering this innovation in the Kenyan Telecoms Industry. The company stated that the MVNO services will run on the excess capacity on its network, ensuring that it maintains seamless quality experience to its consumers.
Airtel Kenya CEO Adil Youssefi commended Equity Bank on the move to pioneer the MVNO initiative in Kenya saying that “The launch of MVNOs is in line with Airtel Kenya’s innovation and differentiation agenda. We believe that the entry of the MVNOs into the market will stimulate and sustain overall market growth through a new range of innovative products and service propositions that will give more choice and value to Kenyans. Additionally, their entry into the market will increase the uptake of mobile services in key segments such as mobile commerce and data thereby accelerating the inclusion of all Kenyans into the mobile revolution for sustained economic development of the country”.
In preparation for roll out, Equity Bank has stated that it has put in place adequate human resource and technology to ensure efficient service delivery. A 300 seat customer contact center fully integrated with voice and social media is now operational 24 hours 7 days a week and staff have undergone intense training on effective customer service and experience.
