Pakistan’s underbanked get evolved mobile money services from Easypaisa and Ericsson

Pakistan has an estimated population of 199 million, with approximately 60 percent of people living on under USD 2 a day and only 15 percent reported to have a bank account.

To accelerate the uptake of mobile money services among the underbanked in Pakistan, Ericsson announces that Easypaisa, Pakistan’s first and largest branchless banking solution, is deploying Ericsson Wallet Platform to replace its existing platform.

Easypaisa was launched jointly by Tameer Micro Finance Bank and Telenor Pakistan. Norway-based Telenor Group, which owns Telenor Pakistan, recently completed the acquisition of Tameer Micro Finance Bank.

Easypaisa’s partnership with Ericsson accelerates and increases the availability of mobile money services for the country’s citizens, while positioning banks to succeed in an expanding mobile money ecosystem.  

The existing Easypaisa service, which includes an integrated m-commerce solution, already supports more than 21 million active consumers and 75,000 agents in over 800 cities throughout the region, including rural areas. This deployment represents one of the largest mobile money service offerings in the world.

Nadeem Hussain, Founder, President and CEO, Tameer Micro Finance Bank, says: “Easypaisa is continuously focusing on enhancing customers’ experience of doing financial transactions in a secure and seamless manner. It is essential to have the right technology partner to roll out new services that provide added benefits and services to propel financial inclusion through branchless banking.” 

Muhammad Yahya Khan, Chief Financial Services Officer, Telenor Pakistan, says: “Ericsson’s next-generation wallet platform is helping Easypaisa increase volumes and payment transactions, enabling wider mobile money adoption and offering a seamless customer experience. We will continue to expand our mobile money offerings, benefiting our subscribers throughout the country with our new platform.”

Rafiah Ibrahim, President, Region Middle East and Africa at Ericsson, says: “Technology is playing a pivotal role in extending access to banking services, and mobile phones are the key catalysts making mobile money a reality. As the essential enablers of mobile money solutions, telecom operators can now join forces with banks and offer every customer the opportunity of being a banking customer. The scale and growth opportunities are immense.”

Ericsson is powering the next generation of mobile commerce development by connecting banks, operators, money transfer organizations, and payment and internet service providers. Ericsson’s solution includes a fully integrated mobile wallet platform capable of hosting all services from a range of financial and commercial institutions, thereby achieving critical interoperability. Ericsson also helps financial service providers reuse existing assets to bundle secure telecom and financial services.

To learn more about Ericsson’s leadership in the global mobile financial services market, including recent work with ASBANC in Peru on a country-wide mobile money deployment, visit: http://www.ericsson.com/m-commerce.