Technology Magazine April 2018 | Page 247

FACTS

AFRICA
• 80 % of transactions are undertaken through mobile banking app , Square
• Introducing free banking has allowed Steward Bank customers to open an account without incurring monthly service fees
• Steward Bank ’ s POS System , Kwenga , provides payment capabilities to SME ’ s
• Steward Bank ’ s scheme , Facebook Banking , will seek to address frequent customer queries the company will receive
• ZamaZama accounts have been packaged to include all the services an emerging SME requires
• Steward Bank ’ s Globe Trotter Card is built in partnership with Visa for example . We are currently allowing up to five traders to share one machine , as we ’ re utilising an app which we have built , where the device will simply communicate with a trader ’ s account and enable more people to take payments .”
UNLOCKING VALUE Customer feedback has therefore been imperative to the development of new products and services at the bank . Collaborating with taxi drivers in the creation of Kwenga , for example , has been essential in developing products and services to address gaps in the market .
“ The second thing that we ’ re doing is offering microloans to traders who are using the portal , because we can see the value of the transactions that they are doing ,” notes Mambondiani . “ We are providing loans on the basis of the transactions that are going through the platform .”
By continually looking at the way in which new technologies can transform the customer experience , Steward Bank is also looking at the advantages of artificial intelligence
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