Zain expands Zap mobile commerce service to Malawi, Niger and Sierra Leone

Zain’s customers in Malawi, Niger and Sierra Leone are set to enjoy Zap, the company’s mobile commerce service. While Zap in Malawi is only at the pilot stage, the service has been up and running for nearly a year in East Africa...

Zain has expanded Zap, its award-winning mobile commerce service, to the African nations of Niger and Sierra Leone and, in the context of a full commercial pilot, to Malawi. The move follows the launch of the service in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda in February 2009 where more than 10 million people have already used the service.

 The mobile commerce service was introduced in the three newest countries in partnership with leading international banks, allowing Zain customers in Zap-enabled countries to use their mobile phone to: 

•  withdraw cash or pay for goods and services, school fees and utility bills, including electricity and water;  
• receive money from or send money to friends and family;
• send and receive money to their bank accounts;
• top-up their or someone else's airtime; and
• manage their bank accounts.

 Zap is described by Zain as “the most comprehensive and accessible mobile commerce service in Africa. It serves over 150 million people in six countries on the continent, allowing them, in many cases for the first time, access to advanced financial services through their mobile phones.” With this latest expansion, Zain is now also claiming to be the biggest mobile commerce operator in the world in terms of geographic coverage, enabled customers and service functionalities.

Zain plans on rolling out Mobile Commerce services in all its mobile operations on both continents (Africa and Middle-East) in the future, subject to regulatory approvals.

More info:

• www.zain.com