Mobile money and Self Bank Who is who

You probably haven’t heard of mobile money gold car bank. It may be that he did, and he just shrugged it off as another one of those fads. But if you haven’t heard of it or if she did and shrugged it off, it doesn’t really matter. What matters is that Mobile Money and Self Bank are here to stay and will affect the way you live your life and conduct financial and business transactions in the near, if not very near future.

Now, if you thought that Mobile Money and Self Bank are a fad, it may be, just may be, a quick who’s who in the world of Mobile Money and Self Bank will quickly shake your belief. You know, recently I was sharing the South African WIZZIT BANK success story with a friend and when I finished, he looked at me and said it would never work. He proceeded to give me a list of why it wouldn’t work. And you’re probably making your own list now of why it wouldn’t work: fraud, lost phones, money laundering, special interests, etc., but wait until you see who’s behind it all.

Earlier this year, there was a Mobile Money and Self Bank Summit and these are some of the presenters and minds shaping the emerging cashless, mobile money and mcommerce global economic order.

In his presentation at the conference entitled “Mobile Money Regulation: A Payment System Perspective”, Massimo Cirasino, Head of the Payment Systems Development Group and Co-Chair of the World Bank, CPSS/WB Working Group on General Principles for International Remittance Services, has the following: to say, “Mobile money is likely to ‘give more choices to more people’ in accordance with Guideline 11 of the CPSS Guidance on national payment system development. However, to be effective, mobile payment initiatives need to become an integral part of the country’s strategy to reform retail…” There you have it, says top global banker, mobile money is a better option and should be embraced as an integral part of national reforms. I can hear it loud and clear, how about you?

The Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS), speaking at a presentation titled “Mobile Virtual Banking Operator (MVBO) redefining what it means to be ‘banked'” You can see that mobile money is bringing a new definition to banking. The document goes on to say: “The global cash management ecosystem already exists. The mobile phone industry has built a sophisticated payment and billing infrastructure to support its core business. It’s a great asset!” RBS recognizes the tremendous integration traffic and transaction flows that exist in the MNO infrastructure and is keen to take advantage of it. They go on to say that “Mobile banking, backed by a payment network, is a hugely attractive proposition for the customer. Fast, convenient, secure, lower cost than most existing mechanisms…”

Japan’s NTT DoCoMo, Inc, also speaking at the conference, noted, “‘Nanaco’ provided by Seven-Eleven Japan, Co. is a prepaid electronic money service of Seven-Eleven” which launched in April 2007. “Since Nanaco started , has rapidly increased the number up to 5 thousand subscribers in 6 months.

Todd Achilles, speaking on behalf of Affinity Mobile, a Dallas-based mobile network operator founded in 2004, said Affinity Mobile’s focus will be on “prepaid and unbanked, delivering value, not technology” to developed and developing economies.

Wizzit Bank of Athens, South Africa, is an early adopter and has recorded significant success. This is what Wizzit has to say. “There are 4 billion people at the bottom of the economic pyramid. Most don’t have a bank account, but they represent a $5 trillion market.” Their mission, in their own words, is “We will bank the world’s unbanked using mobile payment technology.” It’s all about integration!

And finally, Michael Knott of Accenture, a leading provider, says that there are “An estimated 10 million wallets worldwide at the end of 2007. The question here is: What can be done to accelerate the global adoption of mobile wallets?” from the current stage of very early ?adoption?”.

The list goes on, but the point is well made. Mobile Money and Self Bank are two sides of the same card: Mobile Commerce or Mcommerce. It has been treated as we can see. It is a very attractive card and has great potential for everyone. It will be played with you or without me.