KENYA: Visa, KCB, Motor bike riders partner in mobile money transfer

Visa has partnered with KCB Bank Kenya and the Boda Boda Safety Association of Kenya (BAK) to digitize payments for the transport operators.

The partnership will kick off with a three-month pilot project where 100 boda boda riders will be enabled on Visa-on-mobile to make and receive payments.

KCB Bank Kenya will train the riders on the use of the free mobile payment solution.

“Our collaboration with Visa and KCB will enable BAK to professionalize the sector which is required to undergo a transformation as part of complying with government regulations on road safety,” BAK principal Charles Gichira said.

Gichira said the initiative will serve as an investment bloc for over 1.2 million registered operators under BAK.

“We are providing an efficient means for Boda Boda operators to receive payments, understanding the obvious security risks that come with handling cash and bring the sector into the formal financial sector,” Visa East Africa business development leader Kennedy Luhombo said.

Visa has contributed to 50 per cent of the cost for the 100 riders that will be engaged in the pilot phase.

Customers can use Visa-on-mobile to send money directly from their bank to a recipient’s bank account regardless of whether they use the mobile app or USSD code of the bank.

Visa on mobile has already been introduced in Egypt, Ghana, India, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Nigeria, Rwanda and Tanzania. There are plans to launch in Uganda, Zambia and other countries in Africa in the near future.

SOURCE:THE STAR