African partnership: MasterCard, Ecobank take e-payments to 28 countries

DigitalSENSE Business News: 

The pan-African financial institution, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated and MasterCard, have announced a multi-country licensing agreement to facilitate access payment solutions for Ecobank’s customers in 23 African countries, reports DigitalSENSE Business News.

This, DigitalSENSE Business News gathered was part of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) signed in November 2011 between the two organisations.

DigitalSENSE Business News recalls that Ecobank subsidiaries today exist in 28 countries across the African continent and with this MoU, licensed to issue and accept MasterCard prepaid, debit and credit cards.

Also, through this partnership, DigitalSENSE Business News gathered, Ecobank’s customers would have access to MasterCard’s credit, debit and prepaid card products, whilst MasterCard will leverages Ecobank’s unrivalled pan-African footprint to provide its electronic payments solutions to a wider customer base.

Ecobank's Group Executive Director for Domestic Banking, Patrick Akinwuntan, said the provision of convenient, reliable and accessible financial products and services forms the bedrock of Ecobank’s Pan African strategy.

“We also recognize that partnerships with leading global players such as MasterCard are key to accelerating the migration of our customers to a ‘cashless society’ throughout Africa,” he said.

Commenting on this partnership, Ecobank’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Thierry Tanoh said the deal demonstrates Ecobank’s vision to provide customers with convenient, accessible and reliable financial products and services as part of commitment to build a world class pan-African bank and contribute to the economic development and financial integration of Africa.

DigitalSENSE Business News recalls that Ecobank was licensed by MasterCard in 28 countries in Africa including, Burkina Faso, Benin, Burundi, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Republic of the Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d’Ivoire, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea (Conakry), Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

Divisional President, Sub-Saharan Africa, MasterCard, Daniel Monehin, Mr. Daniel Monehin said, they were proud to partner with Ecobank, which is quickly growing its presence in Africa.

“This is the largest multi-country licensing project completed by MasterCard in Africa and as such is a great milestone for us, as we aim to achieve our vision of a world beyond cash by bringing the benefits of electronic payments to an increased customer base in Sub-Saharan Africa,” he said.

Pointing out that they expect the 28 newly licensed Ecobank subsidiaries will begin to accept MasterCard credit, debit and prepaid cards at their ATMs and Points of Sale (PoS) from early 2014, as the partnership works on completing licensing of the remaining Ecobank subsidiaries.

Remmy Nweke

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