Pan-African information technology solutions and services provider Fintech has introduced a technology to Ethiopia that will enable banks to quickly resolve errors related to automated teller machine transactions.

The head of sales at the Kenya-based firm Polycup Osero, said that the service will save Ethiopian banks time and resources in resolving ATM errors, and boost customer satisfaction.

“Currently a bank in Ethiopia uses 30–50 people to reconcile ATM-related error reports. But with the Fintech solution, not more than 10 people will be needed to trace and resolve the error,” said Mr Osero.

The bank is already providing a cheque truncation system to eight banks in Ethiopia, namely Awash, Dashen, Zemen, United, Anbessa, Abay, Enat and Debub Global banks. The system allows banks to capture the image of the cheque and send it to the central bank for verification.

Cheque-related fraud

Many developed countries use such systems to avoid cheque-related fraud and the circulation of fake cheques. In Africa, countries like Kenya have been using the system for the past five years while others like Tanzania, Malawi, Botswana and Ethiopia have been implementing it in recent years.

Currently, there are a total of 16 banks in Ethiopia including Commercial Bsank of Ethiopia, the biggest state bank, with around 50 per cent market share.

However, reports show that despite the growth of e-banking worldwide, Ethiopian banks continue to conduct most of their banking transactions using traditional methods.

The lack of a legal and regulatory framework for e-banking services has discouraged banks from introducing these innovative payment instruments.

Those that have introduced such services have put themselves at legal risk, according to a January 2016 paper titled, Challenges and Prospects of e-Banking in Ethiopia, presented to Addis Ababa University College of Business and Economics.