Category: Tech News

More People are using Mobile Money to pay for retail services

The value of retail payments (excluding cash) increased by 43.18 per cent to GH¢381.43 billion in 2017 from GH¢266.39 billion in 2016.

This growth in the value electronic retail payments for the year under review, 2017 was driven largely by the increase in the value of mobile money services and e-zwich.

This is according to a report by the Bank of Ghana. The report titled “PAYMENT SYSTEMS OVERSIGHT ANNUAL REPORT, 2017” chronicled the varied ways in which transactions carried out in the Ghanaian market are paid for.

The report highlights the many payment systems and forms in Ghana and how the use of digital payments is transforming the payment space.

The report also touches on the critical role financial technology firms popularly known as FINTECH firms are playing in the provision of payment systems or a means of carrying out payment for transactions. They also provide an array of services to the banking sector. Currently, there are 71 FinTech firms in Ghana

Mobile money which is one of the most popular and widely used mans of electronic payments has overtaken cheques as the main non-cash retail payment instrument with 981.6 million volume of transactions, followed by Debit Card (60.4 million), e-zwich (8.4 million), cheques (7.3 million) and Direct Credit Transfer (6.1 million) in 2017.

However, in terms of the value of transactions undertaken in 2017, cheques continued to maintain its lead with GH¢179.6 billion while mobile money followed closely with GH¢155.8 billion.

So the implication here is mobile money leads in terms of its usage as a means of payment for goods and services in the retail space followed by debit cards, e-zwich, cheques and direct credit transfer.

However, in terms of the total amount of monetary value of these payment systems in the retail space, cheques led the lot. Which will imply the monetary amount of cheque transactions is still higher than its peers.

The significant growth in digital payments as a preferred means of transacting retail cash payments according to the report can be attributed to conscious efforts by Government and Bank of Ghana to promote digital payments as an alternative to cash; and customers demand fast, convenient and efficient payments.

Other developments in the payment systems space
The report also captures a number of developments during the year under review such as the introduction of a number of legal and regulatory reforms such as the Payment Systems and Services Bill which was submitted to the cabinet through the Ministry of Finance for onward transmission to parliament.

The Bill made provision for cybersecurity regulations and adherence to Information and Communication Technology standards to minimize cyber risk, airtime use for payment of insurance premium, agent registry, mobile money interoperability, migration of magnetic stripe cards to EMV standard and support for National Identification Authority.

Digital/Electronic products and services
The report also looked at the products and services developed by banks in collaboration with other payment systems providers. These products range from automated teller machines (ATMs) for Rural and community banks (RCBs) to broaden their base to products that enable unbanked to purchase Government of Ghana domestic fixed income bonds using mobile money wallets

Financial Inclusion
The government in collaboration with key stakeholders including the Bank of Ghana developed a draft National Financial Inclusion Development Strategy (NFIDS) framework.

The document was developed by the government of Ghana with technical assistance from the World Bank in collaboration with relevant key stakeholders including Bank of Ghana, National Insurance Commission, and the Pensions Regulatory Authority.

The National Financial Inclusion and Development Strategy (NFIDS) framework aims at increasing access to formal financial services at affordable cost for the adult population. It is envisaged that it would increase financial inclusion from 58 per cent to 75 per cent by 2023.

Source: Philip Nanfuri | JoyBusiness

June 10, 2018
Apple announces iOS 12 with performance upgrades and new tools
Apple‘s annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) is currently kicking off the introduction of its next-generation iOS 12 mobile operating system.

The Cupertino company touts that the new operating system version is molded better with their A-core chips, providing better overall performance than its predecessor. This performance upgrade is felt even at the older models as Apple touts 40% faster app loads, 50% faster keyboard slide, and 70% faster photo browsing on the iPhone 6S running iOS 12 as compared to iOS 11.

Apple also expands augmented reality use with the introduction of ARKit 2, which now supports multi-user virtual reality through shared spaces. There are also new features including photo search, suggestion, and key moments, a new measurement app that utilizes AR to accurately take calculations.

Siri also gets a well-deserved update by learning more of your activities on the background. In turn, Siri suggests phone activities you might need through the day. There’s also a dedicated app called ‘Shortcuts’ to add pre-made or customize your own Siri custom phrases for one’s multi-action tasks such as ordering your usual items or ringing your accessories when you can’t locate them.

iOS 12 also brings in a new set of tools that would give you more focus, productivity, and digital well-being: a Do Not Disturb App, notification controls right from the lock screen and support for group notifications, weekly activity summaries on how you use your Apple device, and App limits to help curb too much phone use. New family controls will also be in place such as downtime for limiting phone time.

Apple also touts new-generation Memojis, customized versions of animojis that you can mold to your resemblance, and can be used in multiple apps.

The new iOS 12 will arrive later this year, with the beta version released today, on the same devices that had iOS 11:
- iPhone X
- iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus
- iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus
- iPhone 6S, iPhone 6S Plus
- iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus
- iPhone SE, iPhone 5S
- 2017 iPad Pro (12.9-inch), 2017 iPad Pro (10.5-inch), 2017 iPad (9.7-inch)
- iPad Pro (9.7-inch), iPad Pro (12.9-inch)
- iPad mini 4, iPad mini 3, iPad mini 2
- iPad Air 2, iPad Air
- iPod touch 6th generation
The Apple iOS 12 will be released to the public as a free over-the-air update later this year. Developers, on the other hand, will be able to get the first version today at the Apple website, while public beta users will be able to download the software later this month.
June 4, 2018
Coca-Cola provides “MySmartCoke” platform to place orders online

The Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Ghana Limited (TCCBCGL) has enhanced the value it gives to its customers by introducing MySmartCoke, a convenient way of placing orders for events.

MySmartCoke, is an online platform which allows customers to place orders for their events and pay using Mobile Money, Visa/ Debit Cards and Master Card.

“With MySmartCoke, orders can be placed and paid for from any part of the world and the products get to be delivered at their preferred location in Ghana,” the company said in a statement.

Speaking to Citi Business News after an interactive session with the media, Sabina Manu, Trade Marketing Director at Coca-Cola, said the aim of the platform is to make life convenient for their consumers.

“The objective is to make the consumers’ journey as simple as possible. We already provide and give them all the convenience. We already provide them with a full portfolio of drinks and that is why we are going online to reach people all over the world,” she noted.

The web-based application is used for events booking, like parties, wedding among others.

Coca-Cola Bottling Company is one of the biggest beverage companies in the country.

May 25, 2018
WhatsApp group Video Call is now available for a few lucky people
The much-awaited video calling within WhatsApp group members (subject to a maximum of 4) is available for a few people. While it’s currently just work in progress, a limited number of people have been able to see the feature being beta tested on their devices.

This is true for Android as well as iOS run devices. To be precise, the version of these OSs which are getting the beta-testing of group video calling is WhatsApp iOS build 2.18.52 and Android beta version 2.18.145+.

It is also being reported that not all users with these OS versions are included for the test run. Unlike some beta-testing program where the users can opt for an invite-to-join basis, there is no such arrangement in this.

If you are keen to know if your device has been included for the testing, you can check by making a video call to another person and see if the ‘add participant’ icon is showing up. If it does, you are lucky and can use the feature; else, you may have to wait. In any case, WhatsApp has promised this feature towards the end of this year.

Apart from WhatsApp, Facebook, that owns and operates WhatsApp, is planning to provide this group video call facility on Instagram as well.

As already informed, the feature as and when made available, will permit a maximum of 4 persons to be added to the group video call including the one who initiates the conversation.

People who keep a close watch on happenings with WhatsApp remind the public that the messaging app had also indicated it is releasing new stickers for both the Android and iOS versions of the app.

WhatsApp has also added new features such as giving admins more control, catching up with messages, Group description and more. As per these updates, which were rolled out earlier this month, group creators can no longer be removed from the group they started.

How to get WhatsApp beta on Android

Signing up for the beta test can be tricky, and it’s definitely not for everyone.

Beta versions of apps are used for developers to test new features on a small number of users.

That means the app might not work properly and may crash often.

Still, if you’re dead set on receiving new features before everyone else, you can sign up.

On Android:
1. Open a web browser
2. Go to the WhatsApp beta test page
3. Log into your Google account (the one you use on your phone)
4. Click Become A Tester
5. Open the Google Play Store on your phone
6. Find WhatsApp – the title should read WhatsApp Messenger (Beta)
7. You should receive an update for the beta version of WhatsApp
May 22, 2018
2018 Ghana Information, Technology & Telecom Awards to focus on FinTech

The 2018 Ghana Information, Technology & Telecom Awards in its 8th year is set to honour leading players in the Fintech industry.

The emergence of Fintech in Ghana has sparked a tremendous increase in domestic and cross-border payments. And Fintech firms operating in the country are contributing greatly towards digitizing the Ghanaian economy with the introduction several solutions for the banking and telecoms industries.

More so, the sector has received some wide-spread attention from micro-insurance; with leapfrog Investments of over $15 million in Ghana’s insurance sector since 2012, making it one of the leading portfolios on the African Continent.

“Hence we have expanded our categories for this year’s awards to recognise the innovation and outstanding service of top Fintech Companies and solution providers who are contributing immensely to the digitization of Ghana’s Economy.” Akin Naphtal, CEO of Instinct Wave, organisers of GITTA stated categorically.

According to him, since 2010, The Ghana Information Technology & Telecom Awards has been shining a light on the most progressive and innovative companies within the ICT ecosystem.

“We are proud to promote success stories, technology advancement and disruption in one of the most dynamic business sectors in Ghana. Not only do we look at businesses, but also individuals who have made a genuine impact on the market from within these companies.” He said.

GITTA is the most celebrated industry awards which have grown to be the ‘Oscars’ of the ICT and Telecom industry attracting the crème de la crème and top decision makers in the sector.

This year, the awards night will be held at the Mövenpick Ambassador Hotel on 29th June 2018.

The awards night provides an exceptional opportunity for stakeholders to network, entertain clients, and reinforce relationships with partners and reward staff with exceptional performance.

Source: Carol Opata – Hogan/GhanaWeb

May 21, 2018
Ghanaians Sign On To MTN Mobile Money To Make Pension Contributions

Close to 100,000 Ghanaians have subscribed to making personal pension contributions through MTN Mobile Money and United Pensions Trust’s personal pension scheme dubbed ‘My Own Pension’.

With over 80 per cent of Ghana’s labour force being in the informal sector, ‘My Own Pension’ which is a tier 3 mobile pension and savings product is expected to create an opportunity for more Ghanaians to have a structured pension system. ‘My Own Pension’ reiterates MTN Ghana’s commitment to engendering financial inclusion, social protection and the improvement of living standards for Ghanaians from all sectors and diverse economic backgrounds using technology. The service was launch in Accra in May in partnership with Fidelity Bank and Bora Capital Advisors.

Commenting on the progress made so far after the launch, Mr. Eli Hini, General Manager for MTN Ghana Mobile Financial Services said, “We are very satisfied with the response received so far from the public, and this tells us that we are gradually achieving success with our quest to drive financial inclusion in Ghana”. “As the leader in the Telecoms Market, we will continue to collaborate with like-minded organizations to make our customers lives a whole lot brighter” he added.

The Chairman for United Pensions Trustees, Mr Harold Awuah-Darko encouraged persons who are yet to sign onto the scheme to do so and enjoy the benefits it provides. He said, “The more you invest in your pension, the more money you would have working for you and as a result, you generate more returns.” Mr Awuah-Darko also commended MTN for sharing in their vision of making pensions available to everyone everywhere.

The intervention by MTN Ghana, United Pension Trustees and the key partners was also applauded by the Director General of Management Development and Productivity centre, Mr KwakuOdame- Takyi who spoke on behalf of the Minister for Labor Relations Mr Ignatius Baffuor Awuah at the launch. He said,“Government is very supportive of any initiative that aids in fulfilling the National Pensions Act, 2008(Act 766) and drives inclusivity for everyone especially those in the informal sector.”

‘My-Own Pension’ scheme is fast, easy and affordable and has optional products ranging from life, health and motor insurance which can be arranged for interested clients. Contribution to the scheme begins with as low as GHS 1 daily, GHS 5 weekly and GHS 20 monthly. There is also the option of doing voluntary payments where a contributor’s chosen contribution is automatically deducted at the end of the selected frequency through his/her MTN Mobile Money account. To subscribe to the service, MTN

Mobile Money subscribers will have to dial *170#, select Pension and Insurance, select MY OWN PENSION, and continue to follow the steps.

MTN Ghana is committed to providing its customers with a brighter life through innovative services that enable them to live a connected lifestyle.

May 11, 2018
MTN introducing Mobile Money “ATMs” in Ghana soon

Telecoms giant, MTN is working to deploy machines that could take deposits and dispense cash for its mobile money business.

JoyBusiness has gathered that MTN has already secured the self-servicing kiosk, but with limited functions like sim change and airtime.

However the plan is to allow the machine take deposits and dispense cash, this is to aid their mobile money business. It is also to ensure that at every point in time, subscribers can turn to this machine to transaction transfers or the mobile money business.

Approvals

JoyBusiness understands MTN had to suspend the mobile money function on the self-servicing kiosk, even on a pilot basis. This is because they have not secured the necessary regulatory approvals. Sources say even though the regulator is willing to approve the service, it wants to be carried out in a way that would not result in MTN operating as a fully fledged bank.

The regulator is also worried about the impact on vendors currently in the country, as it employs more than 150,000 persons.

The Payment and Settlement bill, which will seek to address issues like this, is yet to receive parliamentary approval. Therefore, it is likely that it might take a while before MTN can introduce the full service to aid its mobile money business.

Is MTN planning to become a bank?

MTN Group Chief Executive Rob Shuter announced during the 2018 Deloitte Africa outlook conference in Woodmead that it is working to become Africa’s biggest bank. According to the telecoms giant, this has been influenced largely by the progress made by its mobile money business.

Mr Shuter said, “The core digital service that we have decided to put our money on is Mobile Money. Mobile Money is really about leveraging the strength of the brand and leveraging the strength of the distribution because we have built a huge informal distribution network for prepaid airtime to bring customers into a transactional banking system.”

He pointed out that MTN has deployed Mobile Money across 14 markets and “if we look at our 30-day active users, which is the most important metric, we are growing by half a million customers a month. I think that’s pretty cool and today we are sitting at 21 million subscribers”.

Response from MTN Ghana

Speaking to JoyBusiness, the former Chief Executive of MTN Ghana, Ebenezer Asante said the plan is to rather partner with the commercial banks to provide banking services to the population rather than becoming a bank, “the model that we have implemented across the region is all about partnership rather than directly going into banking services.”

Mr Asante added that they want to concentrate on their core business and rather join the banks to improve financial inclusion in the country rather going out, to compete with the commercial banks.

Impact on mobile money merchants

The service if rolled out, would definitely affect some merchants in the country. The mobile money business currently employs more than 150,000 persons in the country. There is the likelihood that a lot more people would choose a self-servicing machine over the merchants out there. This development could then affect commissions earned by merchants.

Returns on Mobile Money business for MTN

Figures from the Bank of Ghana showed that MTN has about 90 percent of the GH¢2.3 billion of the mobile money accounts held with commercial banks. MTN as at October 2017 had GH¢2.1 billion representing 93.5 percent of deposits held at commercial banks.

The Data from the Bank of Ghana also showed that Fidelity Bank had the largest share of mobile money deposits with GH¢583 million, ECOBANK has Gh¢470 million, while CAL BANK has GH¢229 million.

Source: Modern Ghana

April 25, 2018
2018 Hackathon: Ho Technical University Electronic Voting System Wins

A team from the Ho Technical University (HTU) won the grand prize at this year’s Hackathon; a collaborative computer programming contest that seeks to challenge the skills of computer engineering, science and technical students in tertiary institutions across the country.

The team won the “Best Product Idea Award” for developing a secured electronic voting system using blockchain technology, and was awarded a GHC3,000.00 cash prize.

The epic competition organized by Hacklab Foundation was held at the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology and attracted the participation of 112 teams from 15 tertiary institutions, which solved challenges using Artificial Intelligence, Internet of Things, and Block Chain technologies.

The project featured entrepreneurs and other industry stakeholders who mentored and shared expertise with the participants.

Mr Carlos Ankora, Head of the Computer Science Department, presenting the prizes to the Management of HTU, said the Institution produced five teams which won a total of four out of a possible eight awards at the event.

He said the feat included the “Most Promising Female Developers Award”, won by the University’s all-female team for developing an environmental monitoring system to help stakeholders deal with issues such as pollution.

Mr Ankora said another team won the “Vodafone Special Award” for a hospital crowd funding programme to streamline donations to health facilities.

Professor Emmanuel Sakyi, Interim Vice Chancellor of the University, said the success of the teams was evident of the “strong collaboration between lectures and students”, as well as a strong team spirit within the departments.

He said the Technical University would continue to ensure that students were equipped with “frugal innovative ideas that can transform society and impact Ghana’s development”.

Professor Sakyi said Information and Communication Technology must be utilized to enhance teaching, learning and research, and commended lecturers for helping elevate the image of the University “despite the institutional and logistical challenges”.

He promised management’s continuous support towards such activities and asked students to endeavour to win more laurels for the Institution.

A total of GHC6,800.00 was awarded to the HTU entrants, as well as a free Microsoft training course for the all-female team.

April 18, 2018
Nokia X: New Smartphone set to be launched on April 27, 2018

After unveiling a few new smartphones at MWC 2018 – including the Nokia 6 (2018) and the Nokia 8 (pictured above)- HMD Global is now getting ready to announce yet another handset, this time called Nokia X.

Advertisements for the new Nokia X were found inside a movie theatre in China, proving their authenticity. In the posters, two Nokia smartphones could be seen placed in an X-shape. A report mentions that as per the advertisement, the Nokia X could make its way to the Chinese market on April 27.

As you can notice below, the ads seemingly show renders of the new phone forming an X. Unfortunately, that doesn’t reveal much about the device.

Rumour has it that the Nokia X will have variants with 4 GB and 6 GB of RAM, and either Qualcomm Snapdragon or MediaTek processors. It’s also said that this could be a mid-range smartphone, though that’s far from being confirmed.

At the moment, it’s not clear if this new Nokia X is a handset made for the global market (and maybe Ghana, too), or just for Asia. In any case, what’s really interesting is that, back in 2014, after Microsoft purchased Nokia’s phone division, the company released several Android-based handsets called Nokia X, although all were low-end models that failed to impress and attract customers.

Most probably, the new Nokia X has nothing to do with the old handsets. Also likely is that the X in the smartphone’s name stands for ex [exceptonal], not for ten, as it does in the name of Apple’s iPhone X. But we’ll just have to wait and see what happens.

We haven’t heard anything official from the HMD Global, so the appearance of the ad is totally surprising. Maybe they want to release the phone as a surprise.

Furthermore, it is rumoured that the Nokia X might not even be a single flagship, but the new X series from Nokia. There are still some days left until the expected release date comes. Let’s see if HMD Global confirms if the phone actually exists or not.

April 16, 2018
Heads Up! MTN to start giving flash SMS notifications on bundle usage

MTN Ghana has come under pressure in recent times over how “quickly” their bundle disappears. Last week, a friend told me how her 2GB of data just vanished in a day.

Well, personally, I don’t believe data can just vanish, except in some rare scenarios where there have been genuine mistakes from telcos (some of which never really get solved), the secret to how fast your data is consumed lies in your browsing habits. We shared tips on how to prevent some apps from using all your data.

For example, I asked this friend to check her data usage to see which apps were actually responsible for her loss. The result – WhatsApp had used over 2GB in just a few days.

Since the introduction of the status feature, WhatsApp has been consuming a lot of data and lots of people don’t even realise. The truth is that a video status lasting for 30 seconds is averagely 20MB per the videos I post on my status. Watching just 5 of these videos will set you back around 100MB.

Why all this explanation when we are talking about flash notification on bundle usage?

Well, for starters, before this, MTN does not give indications as to when your bundle is getting finished. Networks like Vodafone and the then Airtel (now AirtelTigo) inform you when your bundle is being used. There are notifications for 50% usage, 90% usage, etc so you have a fair idea how much data you have remaining.

These notifications help to keep a subscriber in check, hence the good news that MTN will send Class 0 Messages on bundle usage. A few people will ask: ‘What are flash notifications or Class 0 messages?”.

What is a Flash SMS Notification?

A message that appears on the recipient’s mobile screen directly. The recipient does not need to go to the mobile phone inbox to read the message, nor is the message allocated to the SMS inbox. Flash SMS is a Value Added Service feature to the standard SMS delivery and is most commonly used to immediately catch the recipients’ attention. Flash SMS Notification is also known as a Class 0 Message, mostly on Apple Devices.

On the MTN Network, a typical example of an SMS Flash Notification is the call summary that one receives at the end of every call, detailing the call cost and duration.

MTN Flash SMS Notification on Bundle Usage

Although MTN has said that the feature will be active starting 3rd April, there is no real guideline as to how often notifications will roll out.

Some users were, however, less than enthused about the feature.

Update:

The most recent message from MTN Ghana’s Facebook Page indicates that users will be able to reply with 1 to renew their bundle OR 2 to approve charging from their main account.

The message read: “Y’ello! Please be informed that from 3rd April, 2018 you will be receiving prompts on your bundle usage. Kindly reply with 1 to renew your bundle OR 2 to approve charging from main account.”.

However, it there is still the problem of notifications for those who use their mifi or devices that can not receive flash.

What do you think about the feature? Will getting notifications as you use your bundle help you to properly manage and check your usage?

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April 1, 2018