ICICI Bank, India’s largest private sector bank and Vodafone India, one of India’s leading telecommunications service providers, today announced the successful launch of ‘M-Pesa’ – a unique mobile money transfer and payment service. ‘M-Pesa’ is the trademark of Vodafone. The service was launched in Kolkata by Rajiv Sabharwal, Executive Director, ICICI Bank and Marten Pieters, MD & CEO, Vodafone India Ltd.
‘M-Pesa’, which is being launched initially in the eastern parts of the country, effectively leverages the combined strengths of Vodafone’s global expertise in the domain of mobile payments and significant distribution reach in India plus the security of financial transactions provided by ICICI Bank. It is initially being offered in Kolkata, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand through over 8300 specially trained authorized agents and will soon be rolled out across the country in a phased manner.
The innovative use of mobile technology makes it possible for customers to enjoy a fast, simple and secure way to transfer money and make payments. Using their ‘M-Pesa’ account, customers can at their convenience:
- Deposit and withdraw cash from designated outlets
- Transfer money to any mobile phone in India
- Remit money to any bank account in India
- Make payments to recharge mobile, clear utility bills and for DTH service subscription
- Shop at select shops
- Participate in e-commerce/m-commerce.
Rajiv Sabharwal, Executive Director, ICICI Bank said, “ICICI Bank has been at the forefront of technological innovations in banking. With the launch of ‘M-Pesa’, the Bank now offers a unique and innovative service that provides basic banking facilities to millions of Indians who still depend on informal channels for their banking needs. We are very happy with the partnership with Vodafone as the tie-up will effectively leverage the security of financial transactions provided to customers by ICICI Bank and the strengths of Vodafone’s significant distribution reach. This launch is line with the Bank’s objective of achieving greater financial inclusion. It also enriches the Bank’s existing suite of mobile banking offerings.”
Marten Pieters, Managing Director & CEO, Vodafone India said, “Vodafone is the world’s largest and leading provider of mobile payment services using ‘M-Pesa’, which offers millions of people basic financial services, beyond the reach of traditional banking. Mobile technology has a critical role to play in servicing the unbanked and underserviced sections of the society and we are delighted to introduce this world class offering in India in partnership with ICICI Bank. Using ‘M-Pesa’, we will provide people in remote areas a convenient way to bank, transfer money and make payments in a safe and secure manner. We have customized our offering to serve the needs of Indian customers while ensuring its compliance with all applicable regulations. Financial inclusion is a national priority and we believe that with ‘M-Pesa’, we now have the ideal offering to enable the same.”
In November 2012, Vodafone India through its 100{af589cdba9d77786c8c861317dbad60bba1e2ebbf56e2ffab874a1b59fde9ce3} subsidiary, Mobile Commerce Solutions Ltd. (“MCSL”) and ICICI Bank had announced a strategic alliance to launch mobile payment services, under the brand name ‘M-Pesa’.
How does it work?
Registering for ‘M-Pesa’ is easy and simple. Vodafone customers need to visit an ‘M-Pesa’ agent outlet, fill up a form, submit identity, address proofs and deposit a minimum amount along with it, to open their ‘M-Pesa’ account. The MCSL Mobile Wallet get activated immediately and the customer can do a variety of transactions like cash deposit, transfer money to any bank account, money transfer to any other ‘M-Pesa’ customer, recharge mobiles & DTH, pay mobile and utility bills. Once the documents are verified and approved by MCSL and ICICI Bank the customer can do other transactions viz. cash withdrawal and sending money to any mobile number.
