Zimbabwe: Chinamasa Urges Banks to Rise to Competition

Finance and Economic Development Minister Patrick Chinamasa has called on the banking sector to adjust to the competition posed by the rising use of mobile money transfer platforms, which are less costly to consumers.

Mobile money platforms allow users to make cash transfers or payments to service providers using cell phones without need for intermediary institutions such as banks.

Speaking at an occasion to launch the re-branding of mobile money transfer provider Nettcash to GetCash, Minister Chinamasa warned banks to rise to competition as a result of technological advancements.

"Please beware this is competition and you need to understand it so that you do not resist it but you flow with the technology. This is going to be a charge free process, we can now be able to transfer our monies and pay our bills without meeting any cost.

"So ask yourself this question, are you going to remain relevant in this new technological process?" asked Minister Chinamasa.

Since the adoption multiple foreign currencies in 2009, Zimbabwe has witnessed a proliferation of mobile banking facilities modelled on the one used in Kenya called M-PESA.