Malawi’s flagship mobile network service provider, Telekom Networks Malawi (TNM) has announced a Master Debt Card launch that will allow holders to do both online and offline payments apart from withdrawing cash from their Mpamba wallet via any Visa card accepting Automatic Teller Machines (ATM).
The card will work like any other bank ATM.
Dubbed ‘Khadi Mbambande’, the card is expected to enhance financial inclusion and improve access to the digital economy.
Powered by National Bank of Malawi (NBM), the physical Mastercard debit card is linked to the TNM Mpamba mobile money wallet, giving customers new ways of accessing and paying for products and services at the millions of retail locations that accept Mastercard in Malawi and abroad.
Customers can also withdraw funds from ATMs, as well as use the card in similar manner to the Mastercard virtual Khadi Mbambande payment solution to have access to an array of online services like Netflix, Facebook advertising and popular online shopping platforms like Amazon.
Convenience is a key advantage of the debit card as customers can easily manage and track finances, as funds are adjusted directly against a customer’s Mpamba wallet with an electronic record of every transaction carried out.
NBM National Payments Director Frazer Mdwazika said, at the launch, that the solution will accelerate efforts towards deepening financial inclusion and economic activity.
“With the TNM Mpamba Mastercard debit card, there is now certainty to add over nine million people to the national payments system in one fell swoop. Such a development has potential to instantly revolutionise the country’s financial services sector, as millions of people become financially included in one go,” Mdwazika said.
TNM Chief Executive Officer Arnold Mbwana said the Mpamba Mastercard debit card is one of the outcomes of the company’s long-term investments in mobile technology and systems and aims to further improve the capacity of Malawi’s national payments ecosystem.
“The introduction of a Mastercard debit card is part of TNM Mpamba’s ongoing programme to provide more people with access to financial services and tools that will simplify their lives,” he said.
The rollout of the TNM Mpamba Mastercard payment solutions plays a key role in advancing Mastercard’s worldwide commitment to financial inclusion to bring a total of one billion people, and 50 million micro and small businesses, into the digital economy by 2025.
Following double-digit growth in 2020, GSMA’s latest data reports over half a billion mobile money accounts in Africa – close to half of the global total.
African users are using their accounts for new and more advanced purposes, including person-to-merchant payments, suggesting that more people are moving away from the margins of financial systems and leading increasingly digital lives.
“To create a powerful ecosystem, partnerships between players are increasingly needed to meet the needs and expectations of the fast-evolving consumer,” said Amnah Ajmal, executive VP for market development at Mastercard Middle East and Africa.
“We are pleased to advance our digital partnerships strategy in MEA with TNM Mpamba, as we support their digital transformation and bring more seamless payment experiences to their customers. This, in turn, will help increase the adoption and usage of digital payments and services – ultimately leading to a more connected, and inclusive digital economy that benefits everyone,” Ajmal added.
