These include Namibia, Botswana, Zambia, Tanzania, Swaziland and Lesotho.
The FNB banking app was the first of it‘s kind in Africa when it launched back in 2011. Since then, the app, as well as the mobi-site, has grown to offer users a broader banking experience on their mobile device.
Both the app and mobi-site gives users the opportunity to do their banking anywhere, anytime and know its still safe and secure.
The FNB app is available to download on iOS, Android and Blackberry. The mobi-site works on all internet enabled phones, including smartphones as well as feature phones.
The app has shown a significant uptake in other African countries where FNB is operating. More than 4200 customers are actively using the app and over 8800 users have taken up banking on the mobi-site.
Why is it so exciting that FNB has launched their app and mobi-site to a greater African audience? Well, because Africa is the world‘s fastest growing market in the world. Providing digital banking to these budding markets will not only secure success for FNB, but will also empower their clients.
COO of FNB Africa, Leonard Haynes, agrees:
“œWe are excited to be taking digital banking to these markets and to be empowering our clients with our world class mobile solutions such as the App and Mobi. This is an opportunity to contribute meaningfully towards the banking sector in our African subsidiaries,“ he said
It also seems as though Africa is coming into a more digital age. Currently, the continent has an estimated 700 million subscribers to mobile connections, with close to 400 million unique subscribers.
WIth the digitalization of Africa, so will smartphone penetration be on the increase. According to research company, ABI, by 2018 low-cost smartphones will account for 44% of all smartphone shipments.
Head of Expansion at FNB Mobile and Connect, Michael Kloeck, believes that bringing FNB‘s banking app and mob-site to Africa is a step in the right direction and preparation for the future of banking in Africa:
“œGlobal trends indicate that Apps and digital in Africa should not be ignored. We foresee that eventually as supply increases and prices of smart devices fall that more people will have access to these devices to be able to transact using our digital channels,“ he said.
The FNB app truly is a leader in digital banking. The smartphone app includes an eWallet – a function that supplies a mobile money solution and also Geo Payments which is a unique, person-to-person cashless mobile money solution.
African FNB customers will also have access to value added services such as free messaging and calls between app users. This is aimed at addressing the African problem of high costs of communication.
Haynes concluded that the FNB app was designed to eventually integrate into a larger, African market:
“When our in house FNB App was designed, specific considerations were scalability and quick deployment into African territories so this is the beginning of a long term strategy. FNB is now a global bank and with this technology we are delighted to be taking our world class mobile solutions to our African clients,“ he concluded.
