Banking
& Finance
S
tandard Chartered Bank is bringing its newest mobile and online
banking platform to 1 million clients
across 8 African markets, the most
extensive digital rollout of its kind in
Africa by an international bank. Supported by the Bank’s global-standard technology, clients will enjoy a
consistent online experience across
laptops, tablets or mobile phones,
and the convenience of banking
from the location of their choice. After the rollout to Botswana, Ghana,
Kenya, Nigeria, Tanzania, Uganda,
Zambia and Zimbabwe in the first
half of 2016, the Bank will launch
fingerprint recognition technology in
these markets later in the year, giving
clients a more secure and convenient way to log in to their accounts.
“We’re bringing the best in mobile banking to Africa – consumers
across the continent are increasingly affluent and tech-savvy and
they want convenient access to
their bank, wherever they happen to
be,” said Karen Fawcett, Standard
Chartered’s CEO for Retail Banking. “Africa is important to Standard
Chartered and this launch is another demonstration of that.” “We are
committed to making banking easier, faster and safer for ourmore than
1 million retail clients across Africa,”
commented Jaydeep Gupta, Standard Chartered’s regional head of Retail Banking for Africa and the Middle
East. “This multi-country rollout is in
line with our promise to bring worldclass products and functionality to
Africa, consistent with the trends
and progress we are making in our
international markets in Asia and the
Middle East. By early next year, we
expect at least 35% of all client transactions to be done through online
channels; significantly advancing the
transformation of banking in Africa.”
The launch is central to Stand-
ard Chartered’s strategy of usng
digital technology to deliver the
future of banking to clients in Africa. The Bank last year announced
it will invest $1.5bn in technology globally over three years.
With Africa’s mobile penetration
estimated to be around 67%, the
launch brings Standard Chartered
Mobile, Standard Chartered’s mobile banking application, to Botswana, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania,
Zambia and Zimbabwe for the first
time. In Nigeria and Ghana, mobile banking clients will move to the
Bank’s standard global platform.
Through Standard Chartered Mobile, clients can check balances,
transfer money and pay bills securely, all through their smartphones.
Standard Chartered is also upgrading its online banking platform in
these eight markets, so clients will
benefit from improved navigation
and user-friendly interfaces on the
Bank’s websites. Clients will soon
be able to use a new self-service
option for wealth management
that lets them set up their investment profiles online and find out
which products are most suitable
by answering a series of questions
on their financial position, investment objectives and risk tolerance.
Overall, clients will enjoy a consistent mobile and online banking experience: usernames and passwords,
beneficiaries, standing instructions
and bill payees are replicated across
both channels. Paying bills is easier
News
banking platform puts Standard
Chartered at the forefront of digital banking technology in Africa
and the first international bank to
extend a brand-new global platform to eight countries in one
rollout. In Kenya and Nigeria, the
bank also recently launched the
Retail Workbench, a tablet-based
sales-and-service tool that “brings
the bank to clients.” Retail Workbench allows sales staff can open
an account for a client in any location and makes banking services like loan approvals and credit
card issuance fast, simple and
completely paperless. Zimbabwe
and Zambia have also launched
digital branches, revolutionising traditional branch formats.
Standard Chartered’s retail banking business serves the banking
needs of nearly 10 million individual
and business clients across more
than 30 markets in Asia, Africa and
the Middle East, through more than
1,000 branches, 5,000 ATMS and
a range of digital and staff-assisted
channels. In 2015, Global Finance
named Standard Chartered the
World’s Best Consumer Digital Bank
and Best Regional Consumer Digital
Bank for Africa and the Middle East.
too as the revamp comes with an
expanded list of utility companies,
cable TV and internet providers.
Bringing the future of banking to
Africa – This online and mobile
June 2016
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