The Nation Newspaper

Tag: transfer

  • Mbaka’s transfer fuss

    Recent transfer of controversial priest of the Catholic Church, Rev. Fr. Ejike Mbaka to another parish should ordinarily have passed as a routine exercise. Bishops, from whom Catholic priests take orders, do regular posting of priests depending on the needs of their respective dioceses.

    Sometimes, priests are changed at quick intervals depending on the discretion of their superiors. Instances abound where priests have been deployed to new parishes or sent for further studies even before they have hardly settled down in their new places of work. That has been the pattern.

    But the posting of Fr. Mbaka from Christ the King parish, Enugu where he had established a flourishing ministry for over 15 years to nearby Our Lady’s parish, Emene seemed to have turned to something else. Not only have motives been imputed into the posting, the authority of the Catholic Church has been questioned by quarters that should ordinarily, not have any business with how it runs its domestic affairs.

    Mbaka did not help matters by the way he reacted to his posting. Not only was he overtly emotional, he gave the impression that he was being punished for whatever reasons. And that largely accounted for the controversy that enveloped his transfer. For the fiery priest who is not new to controversy, the transfer was ‘a calculated move to make him suffer’.

    He said, “I know I will suffer within now and a few months to come. I am going to suffer and suffer. I know that I am going to suffer because I have no place to put my head. I am going to suffer because I have no place to keep the Adoration Ministry’s assets”. These lamentations, signposting helplessness, have tended to convey the impression that there was something punitive in the transfer and that transfer of priests is not a routine thing within the Catholic Church.

    Apparently taking a cue from Mbaka’s emotional outburst, the South-east spokesman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Osita Okechukwu faulted the transfer, attributing it as punishment for his prophesy during the last elections that Buhari was going to win, which has come true. Not only did he attribute the transfer to external influences that brought pressure to bear on the bishop, he questioned the authority of the Catholic Church in the transfer which he curiously claimed will put Mbaka’s life and that of his flock at risk.

    “We do not wholly accept a situation where the church allows external forces to influence transfers as the Mbaka’s case suggests. We frown at anything which will put Fr. Mbaka in harm’s way or deny his flock healing”, Okechukwu said adding that his party was in solidarity with him.

    On account of these allegations, the Catholic Secretariat came out and clarified the transfer as a “normal church procedure”. Secretary General of the Secretariat, Rev. Fr. Ralph Madu said such ‘frivolities’ (accusations) have nothing to do with the posting. He said his posting should have been a privilege, and not a punishment and that the bishop has the right to post a priest wherever he feels his services will be more useful to the church.  And that says it all.

    The issue of punishment, security of the lives of Mbaka and his flock which Okechukwu sought to dramatize should not have arisen at all. Not from a quarter that has nothing to do with how priests and other worshippers live their lives. Beyond that, Okechukwu obviously crossed the line of his duty to have questioned the authority of the bishop to transfer a priest under him to where he feels his services will be most needed. Here, we are talking of other peoples religion; their faith. These are very sensitive and emotional issues that should not be mixed with politics.

    It would seem to me given the sensitivity of the matter, that the opinion expressed by Okechukwu should rather be seen as his personal views. Associating his party with such very sensitive and controversial statements that question the authority of the bishop is bound to offend the sensibilities of the Catholic faithful. Nobody needs to be told how volatile and fragile our society can be when it comes to the personal faith of some people.

    It is also curious he even embarked on the hazardous voyage of pontificating on the safety of the priest, that of his followers and the seeming hardship they are bound to face in seeking spiritual healing and assistance at Mbaka’s new place of posting. And if one may ask, on whose authority is Okechukwu dabbling into issues he knows little or nothing about; issues that fall within the purview of the church leadership?

    Before now, the distinction has been made between the ecclesiastical and corporeal realms. That was the major concern of early philosophers and their opinions have come to shape the relationship between modern states and the church. That relationship characterized by separation of the affairs of the church from that of the state was aptly captured by St Augustine in his famous allegory of the two cities- the city of God and earthly city.

    This pristine philosophical perspective came under assault in the hands of Okechukwu when he questioned the powers of the church to transfer one of its priests; to promote or demote priests.  At any rate, who is in a better position to assess the performances of a priest- his supervisor or some other interloper intent to score cheap political point?  Even at that, he has not helped the case of the fiery priest by associating his transfer with partisan politics.

    Beyond all this, Mbaka should take responsibility for the controversy that has trailed his transfer. It was indeed curious hearing a Catholic priest, a missionary for that matter, lamenting that he was going to suffer as he will not have a place to lay his head. It was strange to hear him talk about the problems he will encounter in preserving the property of his ministry which the Catholic Secretariat has described as his private affair.

    If one may ask, what remains of a Catholic priest or any priest for that matter if he is afraid of suffering? What is hardship, suffering or self-mortification to priests who have laid down their lives for the sake of the gospel? Did Our Lord Jesus Christ who they intercede on his behalf not pay the supreme sacrifice for the sake of humanity? For priests that take many vows including obedience, poverty and chastity; priests that abandon their parents, relations and all earthly things, what is there again in suffering that they should be afraid of? A priest that left all the things of the world to serve God better has no need to talk about or entertain any iota of fear about suffering. And what suffering is there in moving to another parish to re-enact that which endeared him to worshippers in his former place of assignment? These are some of the puzzles thrown up by Mbaka’s reaction to the posting.

    There are missionaries all over the world facing untold hardship including threat to their lives for the sake of spreading the word of God. And we talk of suffering in a routine transfer within the vicinity of the same Enugu metropolis. He should take his posting in good faith even if he does not feel good about it. The people of Emene would be very eager to receive and take care of his needs and he may find the place better than what he had imagined.

    But he must come to terms with the line that should exist between the Church and the State. He must begin to sieve the revelations and prophesies that come his way. It is obvious that his recent widely publicized prophesy that many people are planning to kill Buhari so that corruption and embezzlement will continue, is loaded with the frightening prospects of creating more problems for this country than it is intended to solve. He needs to apply more caution on how he conveys such sensitive revelations or prophesies in the future.

  • Abia Warriors dismiss Chikatara’s transfer fee

    Abia Warriors dismiss Chikatara’s transfer fee

    Abia Warriors have refuted reports in the media that CHAN 2016 revelation, Chisom Chikatara to Wydad Athletic Club Casablanca of Morocco for $700,000.

    Refuting the story, principal partner of Activity Chambers, the club’s legal consultants, Johhny Ogbah, admitted that Chisom has been transferred to Wydad Athletic Club, but insisted that the figure quoted by the papers is not true.

    “The truth is that Chisom Chikatara is now a player of WAC Morocco. All parties have agreed and signed the necessary documents, but the figure being quoted is not correct.

    “It is important that journalists verify stories before rushing to publish it. I read the story and there was no single quote from an official of either clubs, or the player or his intermediary. I wonder where the journalists got the figures they are brandishing from.

    “Our national dailies too should be careful to verify stories they see on websites before publishing them. A simple phone call may have given the true picture of the whole scenario but nobody did so, they just rushed and published without verifying. This is very bad.”

    Asked to reveal the exact figure, Ogbah said it would be unethical and unprofessional for him to do so, as this is privileged information.

    “As is the practice in other climes, if you must report a figure, confirm it. If you do not confirm it, then report it as an undisclosed fee as it is the business of both clubs involved to choose to disclose the fee to the press if they wanted, otherwise they are not bound by any law to do so,” Ogbah further revealed.

    In his reaction, Abia Warriors chairman, Emeka Inyama in refuting the figures being branded as Chikatara’s transfer fee, said the 21-year-old Ibeku-born striker has already signed the dotted lines to join Wydad Casablanca, adding that he was now updating his documents at the Moroccan embassy to enable him unite with his new club as soon as possible.

  • Kano Pillars clear air on Henlong’s transfer

    Kano Pillars clear air on Henlong’s transfer

    2014 NPFL champions, Kano Pillars have said the deal for  former Giwa FC captain, Charles Henlong is all but complete according to coach Mohammed Babaganaru.

    Henlong, who is yet to win his full international cap for Nigeria captained the Tin City side through two decent seasons since the club’s promotion to the top flight.

    However, speaking with footballlive.ng, Babaganaru said while the central Midfielder is certain to join Pillars in the new season, his transfer will be put to bed once the player’s clearance is received.

    Henlong has since joined Pillars in the pre-season and Babaganaru stressed that the player has put pen to paper for the former champions and this deal was duly copied to the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) and the proprietor of the Jos based side.

  • $2.1b arms deal: EFCC traces N4.7b curious transfer to ex-minister Obanikoro’s sons’ account

    $2.1b arms deal: EFCC traces N4.7b curious transfer to ex-minister Obanikoro’s sons’ account

    • Ex-Accountant-General in trouble over N1.450bn remitted into four companies by ONSA

    The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has uncovered about N4.745 billion curious transfers made into the account of two sons of a former Minister of Defence, Mr. Musiliu Obanikoro.

    The sons are Babajide and Gbolahan, who are both directors of the company used in siphoning the funds.

    The suspicious funds were said to have been paid into the account of the ex-minister’s children by the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

    There were strong indications that the funds were used to prosecute the governorship polls for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Ekiti and Osun states.

    Obanikoro, who is already holed up in the United States, was central to the coordination of the governorship poll in Ekiti and Osun states, including alleged abuse of deployment of troops.

    It was also learnt that a former Accountant-General is also on the radar of the EFCC, being one of the beneficiaries of another set of slush funds used for PDP’s campaign in the South-West.

    All the slush funds were drawn from the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA).

    Reliable sources in the anti-graft agency, who spoke in confidence, said the N4.8 billion was paid in tranches.

    One of the sources said: “Two sons of former Minister of State for Defence, Musiliu Obanikoro, Babajide and Gbolahan, are currently on the radar of the EFCC. About N4,745,000,000.00 was traced to a company, Sylvan McNamara Limited, in which they have interest.

    “The money was allegedly paid in several tranches into the company’s account number: 0026223714 with Diamond Bank from the Office of the National Security Adviser account with the CBN.”

    According to another source, “all the transfers were done between June and December 2014, a period that coincided with the preparation for and conduct of the Ekiti state gubernatorial election which ushered in the current administration of Governor Ayodele Fayose.

    “For instance, N200 million was transferred into Sylvan Mc Namara’s account on June 5, 2015, while N2 billion was also wired into the account from the CBN/Imprest Main account on June 16, 2016.

    “Another transfer of N700 million hit the account on July 7, 2014, while N1 billion was credited to the account on July 30, 2014.

    “Other transfers included N160 million on August 8, 2014; N225 million on August 22, 2014; N200 million on November 14, 2014 and N200 million on December 5, 2014.

    “Both Gbolahan and Babajide Obanikoro, directors of the company, were also signatories to its account until 2014 when one Olalekan Ogunseye was made sole signatory to the account.

    “The payments to the company from the office of the National Security Adviser were made without any contract.”

    Responding to a question, the first source added: “Some of the funds traced to Obanikoro’s son’s account were meant for procurement of arms.

    “We are making necessary contact with the son of the ex-minister for appropriate interaction with our operatives.

    “We hope he will get in touch as required or else we may invoke necessary legal procedures to make him to account for these curious payments.”

    Meanwhile, a former Accountant-General was said to be under surveillance of the EFCC for allegedly receiving about N1.450nbillion from ONSA.

    Investigation confirmed that the ex-AG made four accounts available to ONSA where the N1.450 billion was remitted into.

    The affected companies and the breakdown of the cash were as follows: Stellavera Development Company (N300 million); First Aralac Global Limited (N300 million); First Aralac Global Limited (N100 million); Damaris Mode (N300 million); Stellavera Development Company (N200 million); Whese Farms Ltd (N250 million).

    A source said: “These funds paid to the four companies had nothing to do with any project. Findings revealed that the remittances might be for political purposes.

    “Already, a Staff Officer in ONSA in charge of the remittances has made a useful statement to the EFCC.

    “The former AG is already placed on surveillance pending the conclusion of preliminary investigation. We will soon invite the ex-public officer for interaction.”

  • Rangers to wrap up transfer of foreign players

    Rangers to wrap up transfer of foreign players

    • Enugu side suspends Hebem for improper conduct

    Enugu Rangers have until February 1 to wrap up transfer formalities for the foreign players in their team before the expiration of the FIFA transfer window if they are to have their International Transfer Certificate sent that will make them eligible to play in the new Glo Premier League season.

    Presently, the Flying Antelopes are having their pre- season in Benin City with four Togolese and three Ghanaian training with them and after impressing the technical crew, head coach, Imama Amapakabo has authorised their purchase.

    The Media Officer of the club, Foster Chime told SportingLife that Rangers management has been going round to source for funds to meet up with the FIFA transfer deadline of Monday.

    He said Rangers are confident of securing the services of the players from their current clubs in Togo and Ghana before the expiration of the transfer window.

    Meanwhile, Rangers have suspended one of their players, Maurice Elete Hebem for gross indiscipline and improper conduct and the player has been told to vacate the club’s Benin camp until the technical crew revisits his case again in the near future.

    Chime told SportingLife that the club’s head coach, Amapakabo said he decided to  suspend the player so that he doesn’t serve as a negative influence on the other players in camp.

  • Gervinho in talks over Chinese move

    Gervinho in talks over Chinese move

    Ivory Coast forward Gervinho could be on his way to China, with his club Roma confirming that they are in negotiations with Jiangsu Suning over a transfer for the player.

    According to mtnfootball.com, the Elephants star has scored six goals in Serie A this season, but was left out of Roma’s squad for their match against Juventus this past weekend.

    “I can confirm there are negotiations on-going for Gervinho to China,” said Roma director Mauro Baldissoni.

    “When a player expresses the desire to leave, there’s no point keeping him.”

    An offer of €18m is believed to have been made, although it is unclear whether that has been accepted.

    If he does leave, Gervinho would become the latest high-profile player to move to the Chinese Super League.

  • Pillars place 10 players on transfer, to sign 12

    Pillars place 10 players on transfer, to sign 12

    Kano Pillars resumed yesterday for the 2015/2016 league season with over 70 per cent of the players retained from last season witnessing the first training session conducted by head coach, Mohammed Babaganaru.

    The Media Officer of the club, Idris Malikawa told SportingLife that 10 players from those with Sai Masu Gida last season have been placed on transfer while 12 new players are expected to take their places.

    Pillars are on rebuilding process after ending last season in eighth spot with 55 points from 38 matches and unable to qualify for the continent for the first in over three seasons.

    Malikawa told SportingLife that the players were placed on transfer after their low returns last season among other factors noticed which hindered the club from achieving set objectives.

  • Okonjo-Iweala named in N1.17b ‘suspicious’ transfer

    Okonjo-Iweala named in N1.17b ‘suspicious’ transfer

    Reps probe how ex-minister dumped Jonathan’s directive

    A House of Representatives ad hoc committee is probing the “suspicious” transfer to another account of N1.17bilion approved for a Federal Government agency.

    The committee is seeking answers to why the immediate past Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, reversed a presidential directive which approved the money for the Sokoto Rima River Basin Development Authority (SRRBA).

    Besides, the committee is seeking to establish:

    • Who applied for the withdrawal since payment was initiated through an application by the SRRBDA?
    • How a ministerial directive can override a presidential approval;
    • Where the money was returned to after it was withdrawn from the account of the Authority; and
    • Whether the withdrawal was politically motivated given the time of the withdrawal

    The committee has hinted of the likelihood of inviting the ex-minister.

    Mrs Okonjo-Iweala is at the centre of a storm over her release of $330m Abacha loot to the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA), without appropriation. The money, which she said was meant as a loan for arms procurement, later turned out to be part of the cash being shred to politicians and friends of that government before the last general election.

    President Goodluck Jonathan, in a letter, approved the release of the money to the River Basin Authority. The approval was conveyed to the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) by the (then) minister of Finance, according to the office of the AGF.

    The payment was made into the accounts of the SRRBDA on March 9 but withdrawn in two tranches within a week, two months later in May.

    The first withdrawal of N784m was made on 6th May, 2015. The second, N90m, was effected on 12th May 2015 but executed on 16th May 2015 by the CBN.

    Only N874.6million was withdrawn by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from the account of SRRBDA because the agency had started spending the money.

    The investigative hearing by the ad hoc committee was told how the CBN credited and reversed the payment on the directives of the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation (OAGF).

    The Committee, it was learnt, would request from the CBN records of tranfer and reversal of the money from the Natural Resources account and other accounts.

    SRRBDA’s Managing Director (MD) Mukhtar Anka said the agency made an appeal to (then) President Jonathan, knowing that the agency had some outstanding funds with the Federal government, “Because all our previous budgets were never fully released since 2012.

    “We could no longer meet our projects and contractual obligations while our contractors were bothering us.That was why we made the appeal,” he said.

    The representative of the CBN, Suleman Barau, told the committee that the bank carried out its duties based on approved and duly-signed mandates from the OAGF, who owns all accounts of Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDA).

    Mr. M Dikwa, Director, Funds, who represented the Accountant General of the Federation (AGF), Ahmed Idris, said the reversal of the fund was carried out through a ministerial memoranda, unlike the approval that was effected through a presidential approval.

    He also disclosed that the OAGF will recover the balance from the SRRBDA when there is enough money in its account since it had already spent out of it.

    When the Committee asked the AGF why the withdrawals were made, Dikwa said some discrepancies were discovered after the payment.

    He said the one-page approval letter had no attachment detailing the purpose of the funds. It was also discovered that the Federal Government had already paid the said amount by way of budgetary allocations.

    The committee wondered if the reversal was politically-motivated, considering the period of reversal and the 2015 general elections.

    The Evelyn Oboro-led Committee regretted that many of such payments may have been made by the AGF in the past only to claim to have made new discoveries later.

    When the committee asked the AGF to produce the application for the withdrawal, the AGF could not produce any.

    Also, the AGF had no response when asked by the committee to justify effecting the withdrawal with a ministerial directive while the approval for payment was by a presidential directive .

    The committee faulted the AGF for failing to conduct needs assessment and due diligence before effecting payment of funds to MDAs.

    Oboro said: “Conduct of post mortem after payments does not seem to promote transparency and accountability.

    “We are interested in who applied for the withdrawal since payment was initiated through an application by the SRRBDA.

    “More importantly, there is a need to know how a ministerial directive can override a presidential approval.

    “We also want to know where the money was returned to after it was withdrawn from the account of the Authority.

    “We are only interested in how to make agencies of government can be responsive to the people.

    “This is an organisation that can bring a whole lot to the agricultural sector in that region and the country as a whole, yet through whatever what we are yet to understand, it was being deliberately starved of funds. We are determined to get to the bottom of the matter.”

    The investigation continues.

  • Mobile money: Digital transfer is the future

    Mobile money: Digital transfer is the future

    Gabriella Poczo is the Chief Technology Officer of WorldRemit, a global money transfer company. She explains the company’s commitment to ensuring that money transferred across the world is sent digitally as mobile airtime top up, bank account transfer or as mobile money. Poczo tells COLLINS NWEZE that WorldRemit offers same-day transfers to banks in Nigeria from more than 50 countries, adding that there are more ways to receive money digitally.

    Global trends in connectivity show that the future of financial services will be mobile. For Gabriella Poczo, the Chief Technology Officer of WorldRemit, the company’s goal is to help people use online services to send money to friends and family living abroad, using the computer, smartphone or tablet.

    On online transfers, Poczo said WorldRemit is built on strong partnerships with banks, telcos and other pay-out networks.

    “Our service connects to a myriad of different payment systems, both in the send and receive countries. Technically, that means allowing our partners to query our systems through an API, processing transfers as quickly as possible, and updating both senders and recipients about the progress of their transfers. Sometimes that requires “high touch”, especially when we are dealing with partners at different levels of technical sophistication,” she said.

    She said remittances are one of the last frontiers of the internet, adding that in a world where one shops online, books travel online, or listens to music online, people have begun sending and receiving money online.

    “Right now, the vast majority of remittances are still sent and received at bricks-and-mortar agents. WorldRemit is built to disrupt this archaic industry, and take sending money online. With us, all money transfers are sent digitally, and a growing proportion are received digitally – as mobile airtime top up, bank account transfer or as mobile money,” she said.

    Poczo, one of Silicon Valley’s engineering heads, who oversaw Skype’s move from desktop to mobile, was hired by WorldRemit to revolutionalise its mobile money services.

    Her appointment underlines WorldRemit’s status as the leading player in mobile money transfers – with a mobile-first strategy for senders and the largest selection of mobile money wallets for recipients.

    “This company is so far ahead of the game in terms of mobile money transfers. While others are still talking about the opportunity, WorldRemit is sending hundreds of thousands transactions to mobile devices across Africa and Asia,” said Poczo.

    “They know this space better than anyone. Now it’s time to take our service to the next level – integrating more Mobile Money partners, and providing enhanced apps for our senders.”

    On the global mobile money integration and the impacts on emerging markets, Poczo said there are more than 260 mobile money services in the world, the vast majority of which operate in emerging economies and have seen rapid growth.

    “Across many emerging markets, there are two billion people who don’t have a bank account today, and Mobile Money will be their first and only means of accessing financial services. With a few exceptions, however, those services are for domestic person-to-person transfers only. There is no underlying infrastructure to move money from a VISA card in the United States or in the United Kingdom, to an MTN mobile wallet in Tanzania, for example,” she said.

    “So that’s where WorldRemit is offering a convenient solution to connect Diaspora communities with mobile wallets back home in emerging markets”.

    On the strength of WorldRemit’s Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) and what distinguishes them from those of other competitors, she said the company’s focus on a mobile experience is unique and simple.

    “We have used our APIs and our platform to directly integrate with a large number of mobile money services – offering customers the option of sending money instantly from a Smartphone to a mobile wallet. We have a large, truly global footprint, allowing people to send money from more than 50 countries to over 125 destinations,” she said.

    “Our strength lies in simultaneously offering the technology as well the robust compliance platform to potential partners. As a financial services company, we are heavily regulated and compliance factors in as an integral part of our technical development process. Technology ultimately allows us to scale many of the compliance checks we are doing for our customers”.

    As the CTO of WorldRemit, Poczo said he mission is to enhance the use of instant messaging and Voice over Internet Protocol services like WhatsApp, Viber, or Skype have fundamentally changed the way we communicate and connect with people.

    “Compare that to today’s financial services, which have remained archaic and cumbersome. People genuinely still fill out paper forms or queue in line, when they really shouldn’t have to. WorldRemit has the technology in place to offer a financial service on par with today’s communication technology – we make sending money as easy as sending an instant message,” she said.

    “And it doesn’t stop there: We are continuing to improve on the user experience to offer customers the service they want – quick, simple, and intuitive”.

    Speaking further, she said WorldRemit is already ahead of the game in remittances to mobile money. “We have the largest market share in international remittances going to mobile wallets, and have secured the right strategic global partnerships to keep our momentum. At the same time, we are poised to expand our partnerships with Mobile Money services across the world,” she said.

    “There are more than 260 live services – and we want to partner with all of them. Already, we have set the standards to scale our integrations, and we have a fantastic track record: We’ve seen double-digit monthly percentage growth with existing partners”.

    She explained that sending money home has for too long been a frustrating experience for migrants. The company, she said, is using technology to bring real change to an industry where migrants have traditionally faced high fees, costly trips to high-street agents, long queues, and disappointing customer service.

    “WorldRemit lets people use an app to send money – and customers love it. One of our customers recently said that being able to send money instantly makes her feel like her friends are “right next to her.”

     

    Mobile money challenges

     

    Poczo admitted there are challenges ahead for the company’s partners in the mobile money space. However, she said telcos are increasingly investing in better infrastructure and laying the fibre to expand coverage and bring down the cost of data.

    At the same time, we also need more education on the security and ease of use of Mobile Money. Consumer awareness will in turn drive increased demand for better connectivity on mobile devices.

    She said the company launched low-cost money transfer in The Gambia and Burundi. According to her, the company already has on offer, same-day transfers to banks in Nigeria from more than 50 countries, and we are always looking to expand our service by partnering with new correspondents and offer more ways to receive money.

    She said mobile money service providers have a big role to play in raising awareness and educating customers about the convenience and security of mobile money.

    “In countries where WorldRemit sends to mobile wallets, we help increase the viability of Mobile Money as a service. International remittances can help overcome the problem of getting money into the digital ecosystems: Compared to a small peer-to-peer transaction of $10 or $40, the typical international remittance transfer is between $200 to $300,” she said.

    Poczo says WorldRemit already sends to 12 mobile money services across Africa. “In Zimbabwe, where we partner with the successful EcoCash wallet, more than 80 per cent of our transactions go to mobile phones. In Kenya, the huge success and adoption of MPesa has meant that more than 90 per cent of transfers go to mobile money,” she said.

    “At the same time, we have also been expanding our Mobile Money partnerships beyond Africa: In recent months, we launched instant transfers to mobile wallets in Armenia, Fiji, Samoa, Sri Lanka, and Tonga”.

    She said mobile money has grown exponentially all over the world. “Active users of mobile wallets have shot up from only 30 million in 2013 to more than 100 million at the end of 2014. Mobile money already is WorldRemit’s fastest-growing receive option and we fully expect growth to continue,” she said.

    “The growth of active users of Mobile Money, along with increasingly affordable smartphones and data connections, will only make it more attractive to send money to a mobile phone. We offer an industry-leading service and are primed to offer the best possible experience to new customers”.

    She said the majority of those sending money with WorldRemit already use a smartphone or tablet to make a transaction, and we already see the impact of voice and instant messaging services on recipients. “We’ve been described as the “WhatsApp of Money” in the press, which is a nice comparison. Our customers are constantly connected by messaging, and now by money,” she said.

     

    Mobile App

     

    WorldRemit recently launched the global rollout of its new mobile App, enabling customers to send fast, secure and low-cost money transfers from their Android devices. The App makes it possible for people to send money to more than 110 countries across six continents. Transfers can be received as a bank deposit, cash pickup, Mobile Money or mobile airtime top-up, depending on the recipient’s country.

    WorldRemit has gained recognition as a leading player in the shift to mobile-based financial services.

    Founder and CEO of WorldRemit, Ismail Ahmed, said:  “When WorldRemit started sending money online it freed people from transfer agents.  Our mobile App means you can now step away from the computer and send anytime, anywhere.

    “This is part of a wider mobile revolution.  On the receiving end, the number of transfers going to Mobile Money services is growing while mobile airtime top-ups are also increasing.  The future of remittances and all financial services is clearly mobile.”

    WorldRemit predicts that the majority of its customers will use the service via mobile Apps in the near future. In the UK, mobile web traffic to worldremit.com has already overtaken that coming from desktop.

    The move to mobile for remittance senders is mirrored on the receiving end with a growing number of money transfers going to mobile devices.

    In Kenya, 82 per cent of WorldRemit transfers are received on M-Pesa Mobile Money, while 60 per cent of all transfers to Zimbabwe are sent to EcoCash Mobile Money. Overall, more than 50 per cent of all WorldRemit transfers to Africa are received as mobile money or airtime top-ups.

  • Ecobank launches MoneyGram outbound transfer

    Ecobank Nigeria has commenced MoneyGram Outbound Money Transfer Service.  The newly launched ‘MoneyGram Naija Sends’ service allows Nigerians to send money abroad through any of about 500 branches of Ecobank Nigeria, while the funds are received in the specified currency in the receiving country.

    A customer, who wishes to use the service, would pay the naira equivalent (plus applicable charges) to Ecobank as an agent of MoneyGram for the foreign currency that would be paid to the specified beneficiary in the destination country.

    The initiative is in line with the recent introduction of the revised guidelines for International Money Transfer Services by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), which allows provision of Outbound Money Transfer services in Nigeria.

    Kingsley Umadia , Executive Director, Ecobank Nigeria, lauded the partnership with MoneyGram, saying, it represents a significant milestone  as customers can now send funds to family and friends around the globe in naira which can then be picked up in the currency of the receiving country where available.

    According to him, “this innovative, customer-centric initiative is another way of delivery of excellent service to our customers. As a bank, we will continue to deliver and raise the bar of customers’ satisfaction,” adding that, it would also boost trade across the continent.

    Alex Hoffman, Executive Vice President, Business Development and Global Product, MoneyGram said, “At MoneyGram, we believe in movement, we believe in progress. We believe in never being satisfied with the status quo, we believe in pushing the boundaries to give more to our customers the ability to send out of Nigeria, what we in Nigeria call Naija Sends. This represents our commitment to Movement.”

    He explained that customers of Ecobank can now walk into any of the bank’s branches and send money to the world on MoneyGram. “I will like to express my confidence that Ecobank shall deploy its characteristic excellence in marketing, operations and compliance to this product, and I am sure by December- Ecobank will be the number one MoneyGram send agent in Nigeria, “he said.