NIGERIA:FCMB upgrades mobile banking platform

First City Monument Bank (FCMB) Limited has introduced a mobile banking code- *329# to enhance the level of service delivery and experience for its customers.The new banking solution is anchored on the Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) technology platform.

According to the bank, the self-service, stress-free and secured solution, is available on all the Global System for Mobile networks in Nigeria and enables existing and potential customers to carry-out various financial transactions, using their mobile phones.

These include enrolment, funds transfer, account opening, micro loans and top-up, account balance enquiry, airtime and data purchase, bills payment, wallet deposit and withdrawal, sending of cash, withdrawal from agent’s outlet, limit increase, among other value-added services, on the go and without any hurdles.The Executive Director, Retail Banking of FCMB, Olu Akanmu, said the service has been designed to meet the needs of its ever increasing customer base that is technology savvy.

He added that it was in line with the commitment of the Bank to inclusive banking through products and services aligned with the lifestyles of its teeming customers. In a statement from FCMB, the *329# mobile banking solution forms part of the bank’s core strategy to expand its service channels by promoting and deepening the apex bank’s cashless and financial inclusion policies.

It noted that the development will also go a long way to eliminate possible delays periodically experienced by physically visiting a branch of the bank or outlet to carry-out transactions.Additionally, the initiative will reinforce the lender’s commitment to environmental sustainability.geared towards reducing the quantity of paper and other materials usage in the society of which printing of various banking documents forms a substantial part of the process.

FCMB’s mobile banking penetration has been on the increase since its emergence as a retail bank in the country, with the number of active customers using its mobile or internet banking platforms growing by 136.9% from 255,626 in December 2016 to 350,106 by the end of December 2017. It also retained the second position for Point of Sales (PoS) transactions among all banks in Nigeria with over 19.2 million transactions in 2017, reflecting a 227% rise compared to the number of such transactions in the recent past.

SOURCE: The Guardian