Standard Chartered bank partners Airtel Africa for financial services

Yesterday, Standard Chartered bank announced that they are partnering with Airtel Africa to help boost financial inclusion in key African markets by making additional mobile financial services available.

 

The two companies have agreed to co-create a range of services for their customers, starting with the ability to make real-time deposits and withdrawals from Standard Chartered bank accounts. The banks corporate clients will also be able to make rapid bulk payments, such as for staff payroll, directly via Airtel Money.

 

“This reduces the risks associated with travelling long distances for cash payments and instead customers can go to any Airtel Money agent, kiosk, or branch to cash-out their funds,” said a statement from Standard Chartered. 

 

For the bank, this is the latest in a broad range of moves on the African continent, having launched banks across nine African nations in the last year.

 

For Airtel Money, this means that users will be able to receive international money transfers directly to their mobile wallets, as well as facilitating various support services. 

 

This facet of Airtel’s business has been booming recently, with revenue from Airtel Money was on the up, reaching $311 million earlier this year from their 19 million active users.

 

“Our relationship with Standard Chartered boosts financial inclusion across the continent, giving millions of people access to valuable banking services,” said Airtel Africa CEO Raghunath Mandava.

 

In related news, this announcement comes just a week after Airtel’s Kenyan unit’s proposed merger with Telkom Kenya was called off, with both parties citing regulatory hurdles as the key factor in the decision.