Mobile devices aid 608% growth in payment activities

MOBILE devices, including the smartphones; feature phones, tablets, phablets, among others may have successfully aided payment transaction activities in Nigeria to the tune of about 608 per cent growth within a year.
   
As such, the platform is adjudged the fastest payment channel ahead of the Internet (deskstop); third party and Bank Teller, in facilitating transactions in the country.
 
According to analysts, three forces are helping drive growth in mobile and electronic payments transactions in Nigeria and other part of the globe. These are increased penetration of smart phones and Internet usage; advances in technology, and innovative products and services.
 
Expectedly, larger percentage of Nigerians has mobile phones than bank accounts. The Nigeria Inter Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) said the banking industry can boast of about 73 million bank accounts. But the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) puts active mobile subscriptions at over 145 million with 88 million Nigerians accessing the Internet on the narrow band, which is through the GSM platform. This is even as the country’s teledensity has surpassed the 100 per cent teledensity mark.
   
According to World Payment Report, mobile payment transactions grew 58.5 per cent yearly to 28.9 billion transactions in 2014; and e-payments, as demonstrated by trends in e-commerce, grew by by 18.1 per cent yearly in the same period to a total of 34.8 billion transactions in emerging markets, especially in the African region.
   
Indeed, in NIBSS Flash Report, Nigerian consumers are beginning to enjoy greater convenience through multiple payment channels beyond the Automated Teller Machine (ATMs).
   
NIBSS observed that data from the Instant Payment channel showed that growth in the use of mobile devices grew exponentially by 608 per cent in 2014 over a period of one year in comparison to other channels through which Instant payments is executed.
 
“This shows that mobile channels represent the most attractive platforms for instant payments and transfers”, it stated.
   
According to NIBSS, while mobile platforms accounted for 608 per cent growth; Internet saw 117 per cent; third party transaction witnessed 97 per cent growth and bank teller accounted for 87 per cent within a year.
   
In relation to this growth through mobile, the report observed that since 2012, growth in Instant Payment and Point of Sales (PoS) grew by an average of 87 per cent and 77 per cent year on year respectively, which according to it, is representative of consumers’ increasing appetite for immediate and convenient payment options.
   
Accordingly, NIBSS observed that increased reliability, accessibility and security provided through electronic platforms have created a paradigm shift in consumers spending patterns, leading to an increased dependency on these platforms for funds transfers and payments of goods and services.
   
Furthermore, NIBSS noted that although only a small fraction of the cake has been cut in terms of opportunities in the e-payments space in Nigeria, the industry can boast of about 73 million registered bank accounts out of which 42 million have active bank cards.
   
It disclosed that transactional statistics show that daily volumes for Instant Payment in Nigeria grew from an average of 12, 000 in 2012 to over 100,000 in 2014.