FNB partners with OK Zimbabwe

FIRST National Bank has partnered with OK Zimbabwe in an arrangement that will facilitate the transfer of money by expatriate Zimbabweans in SA to their relatives back home.

FIRST National Bank (FNB) has partnered with OK Zimbabwe — the country’s biggest retail operator — in an arrangement that will facilitate the transfer of money by expatriate Zimbabweans in SA to their relatives back home.

However, strict documentation requirements by banks and money transfer companies present a major deterrent to those intending to send money through formal channels.

The economic trouble that Zimbabwe has experienced over the past few years has forced its citizens to seek greener pastures in SA. However, most do not have the relevant documentation, which forces them to use informal channels such as taxi and bus drivers to send money home.

“Zimbabweans employed in SA are sustaining the Zimbabwean economy in some way because they send money back home,” said economist Johannes Kwangwari.

“But this money is difficult to track and keep record of as it is sent through informal channels— mainly because of requirements by banks and other money transfer companies— with only a small portion (being sent) through formal channels,” he said.

FNB yesterday launched the FNB Zimbabwe Money Transfer service in partnership with OK Zimbabwe, a mobile-based money transfer service which it said would be fast.

“We have done extensive research into the cross-border remittance market and devised a service that is readily accessible to the people who need it most,” FNB Africa head of digital and alternative banking Yolande van Wyk said yesterday.

It will cost about R45 to send between R100 and R1,000, and cost R70 to send between R1,001 and R1,500. Users, who need not be FNB cus- tomers but need to have relevant documentation, can send up to R3,000 a day or about R10,000 each month.

FNB said that at the moment money sent via the service can be redeemed at two OK Zimbabwe retail outlets, one in central Harare and the other in central Bulawayo, Zimbabwe’s second-largest city. There are plans, however, to expand the service to the remaining 32 OK Zimbabwe branches across the country.

The recipient receives a mobile text message informing him or her of the transaction, while the sender will be notified through an SMS when the money has been redeemed. If not claimed within two weeks, the money will be sent back to the sender.

“FNB’s Zimbabwe Money Transfer service is more convenient and economical than anything else offered in the market,” Ms van Wyk said.

It will experience competition from other services such as MoneyGram, Mukuru.com and Western Union.

According to FNB, research shows that about 1.9-million Zimbabweans living and working in SA remit about R6.7bn a year back to Zimbabwe. Nearly 20% of this amount is spent on getting the money into Zimbabwe.