Nokia, Yu and Obopay join region’s cash transfer market
By MICHAEL OUMA

The scramble for the money transfer services market via mobile phones in the region is set to intensify following the entry of Obopay, a global provider of payment solutions.

Obopay has partnered with Kenya’s fourth mobile network, Essar Telecom Kenya (ETK) and mobile handset maker Nokia, to launch a money transfer services called yuCash - to be carried out under the Obopay platform.

Obopay and Nokia are set to launch a money transfer service in early 2010, through a service called Nokia Money, which has newly developed mobile elements, enabling multi-party interaction across mobile networks and banks.

yuCash, to be delivered via Equity Bank, will be utilised by Yu’s estimated 700,000 Kenya subscribers.

Yu’s chief commercial officer Kunal Ramteke said that over the next two months, yuCash will be working to grow its countrywide network of agents which will allow subscribers to transact from anywhere in the country.

Continental reach

“As we grow into other countries in Africa, we will ensure that this same innovative platform of mobile money transfer will also be utilised across the continent,” said Essar Group Africa chief executive Jayant Khosla.

Mr Ramteke said that yuCash has several features meant to enhance subscriber’s experience including a record of customers’ transactions over the past 30 days, enabling them to keep a clear track of their transactions, which eliminates the need to keep a manual record.

Changing business landscape

Nokia Money is a reaction to the changing business landscape that compels mobile phone handset manufacturers to venture into new areas for additional revenue streams.

The entry of yuCash and Nokia Money is set to fuel increased marketing by mobile telephony operators that currently offer such services.

These include Safaricom, whose M-Pesa service currently boasts over 7 million subscribers in Kenya, and another one million subscribers in Tanzania, and Zain’s Zap solution, which currently has about 400,000 subscribers. In Uganda, MTN also has a money transfer solution.