Airtel Africa Launches Smartcash Payment Service Bank in Nigeria

By Tolulope Oke

Airtel Africa inaugurated its Smartcash Payment Service Bank in Nigeria on Thursday, to increase its level of financial inclusion.

This comes two months after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) awarded it a full Payment Service Bank (PSB) license.

The Smartcash Payment Service Bank, will offer dependable and secure financial services throughout Nigeria.

With its main office in Lagos, it provides a variety of banking services including providing debit and prepaid cards, processing payments and remittances inside Nigeria, and accepting deposits from both individuals and small businesses. Global transfers and person-to-person payments are also made possible via Smartcash. Currently, the service is offered at a few retail touchpoints.

In an effort to hasten financial inclusion for all Nigerians, plans are in the works to extend the cutting-edge, technologically driven services to all regions of the nation, including the most remote and isolated areas.

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According to the Access to Financial Services in Nigeria report’s estimate of Nigeria’s adult population, 368.8% of whom are unbanked, Smartcash already aims to reach them.

Speaking at the launch, Airtel Africa’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Segun Ogunsanya said: “The launch of Smartcash Payment Service Bank gives us fresh impetus at Airtel Africa, to continue growing our footprint in the continent and delivering innovative solutions. In the bank, we have the best of both worlds – a hybrid of commercial bank and mobile financial services – offering last mile connection to the financially excluded.

Through it, we want to contribute towards driving financial inclusion in Nigeria, to empower Nigerians while transforming the payment landscape in Nigeria and the rest of Africa.’’