FiA_2015

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Northern Africa TUNISIA Tunisia already has a significant proportion of its citizens accessing financial services through its La Poste service. Though not a bank nor a microcredit firm, over 6 million of the country’s 11 million have postal financial accounts. Of those in the country that are part of a formal financial service, 90 percent of them are with the La Poste system. La Poste offers a large array of FinTech products from MFS, domestic and international remittances (through MoneyGram and Western Union), bill payments and smartcard purchases. Nevertheless the Tunisian Central Bank (Banque Centrale de Tunise – BCT) is still trying to improve MFS for its citizens through regulatory reforms. There are three institutions representing the government legalization process for the mobile money service. These are: Banque Centrale de Tunisie (BCT), the Ministry of Communication Technologies (MCT), and Société Monétique Tunisie (SMT), which is a technology arm of the BCT. a) The Banque Centrale de Tunisie (BCT): defines the prudential regulation, control and supervises banks and other financial institutions. It is the primary regulator for MFS too. It has partnered with Societe Monetique Tunisie (SMT) for the provision of switching and clearing services. In 2011, the BCT issued a circular on MFS, stating that they may only be used for payments – all loading needed to be dealt with at a bank branch or through the use of a prepaid card issued by a bank. This effectively left the development of MFS to banks. b) The Ministry of Communications Technologies (MCT): is responsible for the organisation of the telecommunications sector and oversees all planning, control and supervision of its activities. In 2013, following a series of talks between the Ministry of Telecommunications and other stakeholders – they agreed a change was needed in MFS. The talks reached a standstill and in 2014, both World Bank and Consultative Group to Assist the Poor (CGAP) launched an assessment of the country’s MFS usage and market potential. At present the business model practiced is a bank-led one, with MNO involvement limited to the development process. AML/CFT and KYC requirements must be performed at a bank with a photograph ID. However, there remains a lack of clarity about these elements (AML/CFT and KYC) and also interoperability. MOROCCO Efforts are being made by Moroccan authorities to modernise its banking systems and increase financial services access to its population. The country is a significant financial centre in Africa, particularly for in¬surance where it is the second largest market after South Africa. In 2010, the CGAP conducted a favourable evaluation of the country’s financial inclusion strategy. Since then, the Bank of Morocco (BAM) has implemented the Strategic Plan (2013 – <strong>2015</strong>) to address some of the concerns raised. The country has a lot to gain from using MFS as it has a high mobile phone subscription rate per 100 people. This figure has grown from 30 (2004), to 100 (2011) 1 to over 135 in the most recent studies (<strong>2015</strong>) 2 . There are two public entities responsible for the regulation of MFSs in the country. These are Bank Al- Maghrib (BAM), which is the Central Bank of Morocco, along with L’Agence Nationale de Réglementation des Télécommunications (ANRT) – the Telecommunications Authority. a) The Bank Al-Maghrib (BAM): is the prudential regulator and supervisor of financial institutions. Its responsibilities include monitoring and ensuring security payments systems and related standards are maintained. It also acts as the government advisor on aspects relating to the banking and financial sector. In 2014, BAM was given assistance 3 by the European Investment Bank to promote financial inclusion in the country. Some of the difficulties which had already been aired included the requirement for all MNOs and their respective agents be registered as public limited or limited companies 4 . However, amendments made to Loi N° 30-03 Relative aux Etablissements de Credit et Organisme Assimiles (2013) have not only put forward clearer definitions 24
of MFS and other concepts, but also created a Payment Service Provider category to lead MFSs. b) L’Agence Nationale de Réglementation des Télécommunications (ANRT): is responsible for the supervision of the postal service (La Poste) and the telecommunications sector. Its duties include the promotion and maintenance of a fair and competitive market. Under the Payment Service Providers category, which is determined by the BAM, firms are able to transfer funds and execute payment transactions. AML/ CFT and KYC requirements include the individual’s national ID and address. These requirements are for both the sender and recipient. There was no indication during the research for this report that interoperability is mandatory. EGYPT In 2010, the Central Bank of Egypt (CBE) approved the use of MFSs for banks. It was a prudent move toward greater financial inclusion. Egypt has an economy heavily dependent on cash with an estimated 94 percent of transactions being cash-based 5 . The reasons for this are both cultural – such as the notion of social money pooling, Gam’eya; and sociological as there remains a general lack of trust in the financial services and banking sector. This has resulted in a low banked rate of just 36 percent (as recently as 2011) when both formal and informal financial players are considered 6 . There are two main bodies responsible for the regulations regarding Egypt’s MFS. These are the CBE and the National Telecom Regulatory Authority (NTRA). a) The Central Bank of Egypt (CBE): is responsible for supervising the financial activities, the banking business and for overseeing any new financial services coming onto the market. The CBE (in close collaboration with the Ministry of Finance) has delegated part of its responsibility to the Egyptian Banks Company (EBC). These mainly concern the oversight of the Debit Card Scheme and Shared Cash Network, The Automated Clearing House, and The Mobile Payment Network. EBC is also working closely with MasterCard to bring MFS to all people in Egypt. b) The National Telecommunications Regulatory Authority (NTRA): ensures the total coverage of the mobile services network. It also monitors the technical and economic efficiency of MNOs in the country. The body benefits from close collaborations with the CBN and was consulted when MNOs were being given the opportunity to provide MFS. The NTRA has also been pressuring the CBN to make some amendments to MFS regulations. They have lobbied for the increase in the daily limits placed on MFS transactions and for the CBN to explore how the service might best facilitate international remittances. The 2010 regulations released by the CBE only allow banks to deliver MFS. This is subject to being licensed by the CBE itself. Non-banks must partner with banks, though ultimate responsibility for the service rests with the bank. As part of AML/CFT and KYC requirements, service providers are required to obtain and send a copy of the account holder’s identification document onto the partnering bank, if conducted by a service provider. The regulations also include maximum limits on users’ account balances, and their daily and monthly withdrawal volumes too. Eastern Africa KENYA Following months of engagement between Safaricom and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), it was agreed that M-Pesa could be brought onto the market in March 2007. Within less than two years the service had amassed 4.5 million active customers. It was its astronomical rise and pressures from the Kenyan Bankers Association, which resulted in the service being called into question by the Ministry of Finance in late 2008. In a controversial statement, the Ministry expressed doubt that M-Pesa “will end up well” 7 . It instructed the CBK to conduct a risk assessment into M-Pesa’s services and to determine its place within Kenya’s legislative framework. CBK was satisfied with M-Pesa’s security and risk procedures – which were benchmarked against global standards on the prevention of money laundering. CBK’s legal team also settled the Banks’ main dispute, namely that the operation was not a banking business as defined by the Banking Act. The risk assessment was published in Kenya’s Gazette in early 2009. The following year, the CBK issued the 25
Page 1 and 2: EXPLORING AFRICAN FINTECH OKA-HR ww
Page 3 and 4: Contents EXECUTIVE SUMMARY.........
Page 5 and 6: level of success in coordination (w
Page 7 and 8: for cash or a stored value that is
Page 9 and 10: PART 1: COUNTRY HIGHLIGHTS Establis
Page 11 and 12: Barn Khayelitsha — a co-working s
Page 13 and 14: majority of activity occurs in Lago
Page 15 and 16: un cashless payment systems in Ghan
Page 17 and 18: public sector teachers, and EABL, t
Page 19 and 20: Egypt (Cairo) Population: Between
Page 21 and 22: MFS Potential - Formal banked and m
Page 23: PART 2: ACROSS THE CONTINENT Legisl
Page 27 and 28: RWANDA By 2006, The National Bank o
Page 29 and 30: SOUTH AFRICA As the first country i
Page 31 and 32: Enabling Environment - Mapping the
Page 33 and 34: Orange Moves East As well as facing
Page 35 and 36: Percentage and geographical spread
Page 37 and 38: Saving In itself MFS does not encou
Page 39 and 40: Overall the numbers are hugely posi
Page 41 and 42: Financial Deepening Through M-Pesa
Page 43 and 44: Incubators HIGHLIGHTED START-UP ENA
Page 45 and 46: number of events and by providing b
Page 47 and 48: payments for agricultural products
Page 49 and 50: 19. Instituto Nacional de Estatisti
Page 51 and 52: 14. Aker, J. C., and Mbiti, I.M., (

FiA_2015

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