Prepaid electricity rising to top of cellphone banking

Buying prepaid electricity via FNB Cellphone Banking has grown to 62% as customers begin to see the benefit of using self-service channels for these types of transactions.

62% of all prepaid electricity purchases processed by FNB are made on Cellphone Banking. Prepaid electricity purchases via FNB Cellphone Banking have also seen year-on-year growth of approximately 30% in both transaction volume and value.

‚”Long gone are the days of having to travel to a retail store to top-up your electricity meter when the lights go off, instead customers can recharge instantly using FNB Cellphone Banking, whilst standing in front of their meters,‚” says Dione Sankar, Head of Cellphone Banking and Messaging at FNB.

Over the years banks have introduced various ways to bank, including Cellphone Banking, which allows customers to bank whenever and wherever they want to using their cellphone. In addition to traditional banking needs, FNB has innovated to provide other convenient services such as Prepaid Airtime, Data Bundles and Lotto ticket purchases.

‚”Cellphone Banking is a popular and convenient channel for most South Africans who may not have easy access to traditional forms of banking like Branches or ATMs,‚” says Sankar.

Cellphone Banking is proving to be popular because of its convenience, no complex setup process, ease of use and safety factor. According to the World Wide Worx 2012 Mobility Report, Cellphone Banking is the third most popular method of banking in South Africa after ATMs and branch visits.

‚”Banking is no longer an activity that takes hours out of our customers’ day to travel to an ATM or Branch. It assists customers in keeping in touch with the bank 24/7 and providing value added services such as Prepaid Electricity or airtime, checking balances and making transfers or payments,‚” continues Sankar.

Cellphone Banking is also very safe and convenient to use. Sankar notes that the bank has a rigorous and multi-layered approach to ensure that Cellphone Banking is safe. ‚”If customers do their part by not giving out any of their personal and banking information such as their PINs and passwords, there is no reason to worry that their money is not safe.‚”

FNB Cellphone Banking can safely and easily solve the following everyday transaction hassles:

THE HASSLE: In need of extra cash

The Cellphone Banking Solution:

1) If you, your employer or friend/family bank with FNB, Pay 2 Cell will allow the registered Individual Cellphone Banking customer to pay a recipient directly into their FNB bank account by knowing only the recipients cellphone number registered for inContact.

THE HASSLE: Forgot to buy airtime

The Cellphone Banking Solution:

You can Purchase airtime for yourself or someone else who is on the same network as you, even if you have no airtime, by simply dialing *130*321#. Choose Prepaid, recharge, mobile airtime and follow the instructions to recharge your account automatically.

THE HASSLE: Prepaid electricity runs out

The Cellphone Banking Solution:

Recharge without leaving your home by simply logging on to Cellphone Banking, selecting electricity and following the instructions to receive a sms containing the electricity recharge token.

‚”It is our priority to provide services that both simplify the lives of customers and reduce their costs of using financial services. Cellphone Banking does this by bringing convenience and savings to urban, rural and under-banked users,‚” says Sankar.

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