As Nigeria’s digital payment space continues to expand in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directives on cashless economy, Fintechs are taking massive strides as well as risks with new innovations to drive financial inclusion in the country.
Apart from deploying agents in rural areas, products that make transactions easier, seamless and secure are being developed regularly.
Lolade Akinsete, the chief operating officer of a popular indigenous fintech firm, E-Settlement Limited says that there is absolute need for rural dwellers to embrace digital and agency banking, as it helps protect funds.
Speaking on the financial solutions provided by the company, Akinsete said that “Paycentre is a financial inclusion solution that provides some banking hall services outside of the brick bank especially in underserved and unbanked communities. Paycentre also aims to be a lifestyle solution with bill payment features ranging from airtime, to cable and also electricity. Paycentre aims to provide everyday needs for funds without you having to visit a bank.”
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“The Paypad on the other hand, is a merchant solution and is only card present. It is your regular POS but ours is a mobile POS (mPOS) where the merchant/shop owner has an application and can input the cost of the item bought on the app and the mPOS serves as a card reader. Interesting fact, Paycentre was born out of the Paypad solution. PayPad grants its users access to functions such as e-marketing, smart printing, sales analytics, payment acceptance, seamless integration, multi-location support, invoice & order issuance,” she said.
Akinsete commended the Central Bank of Nigeria for playing a superb regulatory role while hinting that the company has its eyes on the West African and Sub-Saharan market.
“The CBN is regularly evolving and coming up with guidelines and rules to put structure in this market that is constantly growing and changing. CBN is not only protecting us but protecting the end users which are the everyday customer.
“They have an enormous task at hand and they perform it graciously and even beyond scope. We totally align with their policy directives as a regulator and I must tell you the truth, we commend them for their directives. We are definitely looking to expand to other countries in Africa that have these same issues that we experience here in Nigeria. We have that in the plan, we hope to expand to other African countries, but it is one step at a time”, she said.
E-Settlement Limited is an independent, private sector led, limited liability company, focused on providing innovative, dependable, easy-to-use, affordable and secure payment solutions to everyday financial problems in Africa.
