Mobile Money is as confusing to me as Nigerian Politics is. I had to dive deep into Mobile Money with the quest to understand it and see what problem it solves that hasn’t been solved (properly) by a solution we already have on ground in Nigeria.
I wrote this article a while ago to explain what Mobile Money meant to me. I have since tried some Mobile Money Services available in Nigeria.
Trying out Paga
The first time I created an account with Paga, I did it using some shortcode sent from my phone to a mobile number made available by Paga. I was helped by a Paga staff. I tried to understand what he did in order to start using the service, but I only stopped at registration and abandoned the service thereafter.
Every once in a while, I will bump into Paga on billboards. They even had an ad on radio with a catch phrase: “Just Paga it.” I find that phrase to be catchy and I eventually decided to give the service a second look; I registered afresh on the Web. This time, I used another phone number. With Paga, you’re required to register with your phone number. At the time, the only means of recharging my Paga Mobile Wallet was to go to the bank and make a deposit or visit a Paga agent (limited in number then). Considering the fact that I am always on the Internet, I prefered if my bank account was linked to my Paga account with the ability to make a deposit into my Paga Wallet using bank transfer.
Finally, I started using Paga when the option of paying with my debit card was introduced. The first time I used Paga actively, I loaded N2,000 into my Paga Wallet using my GTBank ATM/Debit Card. My Paga Wallet was credit instantly. There was no delay. Delivery was real time. I was able to buy credit for my phone immediately.
Then Paga introduced ATM cardless withdrawal. I loved that too and saw a use case for it when I had to send money to a friend whose bank account was dormant and the cash needed to be withdrawn immediately. Neither my friend nor I had used the cardless ATM withdrawal before. It was pretty simple to use. The moment I initiated the transfer using the browser on my phone, and added my friend’s phone number, she was alerted of the money transfer via text message on her phone and asked to contact me for the secret code. I promptly sent it with instructions. At that time, Cardless ATM withdrawal was only possible on GTBank and FirstBank ATMs. She successfully withdrew the cash. I was charged a transaction fee.
Since then, I have been using Paga on my phone and on the Web. No mobile app from Paga for my iPhone yet. What I simply did was bookmark their website for quick access on my phone.
GTBank Mobile Money
Mobile Money is a struggle so far in Nigeria. Anyone who has tried and faced difficulty in setting up an account is likely to give up and not try it again. In my own case, I kept trying it because I wanted to experience how it works and then share my experience.
After several visits to GTBank to set up my GTBank Mobile Money, I was able to set it up a few weeks back on my iPhone 5. This was after GTBank released a new set of Mobile Banking and Mobile Money app on BlackBerry, Android and iPhone. The Mobile Banking and the Mobile Money application are built together in one.
Although I am a late adopter of Internet Banking and Mobile Money, I hardly scratch mobile phone recharge cards these days. I am either using Paga or GTBank Mobile Money. I primarily use GTBank Mobile Money because it is simple and faster to credit my GTBank Mobile Money Wallet than recharging my Paga Mobile Money Wallet. My GTBank account is connected to my GTBank Mobile Money account, a few clicks within the GTBank app and my Wallet is credited; I don’t have to enter OTP or token code.
Other Mobile Money
I have heard about Pocketmoni and some other mobile money services out there. But the two I mentioned above are the ones I’ve tried and recorded success with. Although, I found that I’m experiencing issues with GTBank Mobile Money from time to time. Whenever it fails, I turn to Paga.
Personally, I don’t need more than two mobile money account. Like bank accounts and SIM cards, Nigerians hardly have one. You don’t want to be caught wanting when the only service you’re relying on fails you.
What’s your experience with mobile money?
