Kenya and Tanzania are among the top countries in Africa that use mobile devices to conduct financial transactions.
Kenya and Tanzania are among the top countries in Africa that use mobile devices to conduct financial transactions.
The announcement was made at a recent meeting that brought together central bank governors and financial experts from Africa held in Zanzibar.
“In Kenya there are 40,000 agents and 18 million people subscribing to mobile phone providers. The amount transacted in a single day through the mobile phone is $41 million, a figure said to be higher than what Western Union transacts in a year,” said Kenya Central Bank Governor Njuguna Ndung’u.
His Tanzanian counterpart, Benno Ndulu, said though introduced later in his country, the services had quickly picked up.
“There are more than 20 million subscribers and transactions over the mobile phone stand at over $20 million a day, a figure that is likely to grow once such services get linked to normal banking services,” said Prof Ndulu.
Last December transactions through the mobile phone reached 760,000 per day, while money deposited in the trustee accounts by agents for these services reached Tsh97 billion ($60.63 million).