Bank customers to make payments through mobile phones
The Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS) has collaborated with information technology payments company, e-Transact, to develop a mobile payment system onto the gh-link platform.
The move constitutes a major step to ensure that customers of banks can make payments from the mobile phones.
The mobile phone payment systems will link customer’s phones to their bank accounts and enable them to make payments from their mobile phones.
The payment system is intended to create more convenience for bank customers and encourage more people to keep bank accounts.
The gh-link platform introduced by GhIPSS last year interconnects all the banks. This means that any service available on the electronic platform will be available to the banks.
“The system will make it possible for all bank customers to make payments from their mobile phone in the course of next year, the Chief Executive of Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS), Mr Archie Hesse, explained to the GRAPHIC BUSINESS.
Currently a few banks have introduced the mobile phone payment system, but with the gh-link platform, the service will be available across all other banks.
Mr Hesse explained that the system had already been developed and would be tested early 2014 and thereafter go live.
He said the introduction of the gh-link mobile was part of GhIPSS mandate to transform the country into an electronic payment society that would make payments and banking in general pleasurable and convenient for the customer while reducing the cost of operation for banks.
Currently, local automated teller machines (ATM) cards are virtually interoperable in any ATM, following the introduction of the gh-link ATM.
GhIPSS has also begun piloting the gh-link hybrid Point of Sales (POS) terminal which enables bank customers to use local ATM cards to shop.
The mobile payment system will an enhancement to give the public additional flexibility.
Mr. Hesse said every effort was being made to bring the country’s payment system to international standards, so that dependence on cash transactions would reduce. He urged banks to work very hard to promote and ensure that the services were well patronised, adding that the mobile phone payment system and paying with ATM cards, would catalyse more transactions through the banking system and banks will be able to retain more money to on lend.
“If banks can retain a lot of money, because most transactions are taking place through the banking system, then they would have access to cheap money and loans should also be cheaper”, Mr Hesse added.