Report by Christopher C. Walker, [email protected]
Busan, South Korea – The Pan African Bank, Ecobank, has won two major awards at the African Banker’s Prestigious Ceremony held at the Paradise Hotel in Busan, South Korea. The bank was named “Best Retail Bank in Africa” after impressing judges with the strides it has made to leverage digital financial services and an enhanced service model, to be the retail bank of choice.
The ever-improving features set of the truly revolutionary Ecobank Mobile App, which has now been downloaded by more than five million people, took the prize for “Innovation in Banking,” thanks to the way it has redefined borderless and inclusive banking, along with several other transformative innovations designed to deliver financial services to all.
Commenting on the double awards, Omar Ben Yedder, publisher of African Banker said: “Ecobank has had a game-changing year in so many ways and their approach to embracing technology and putting it at the center of their growth strategy has obviously paid dividends.”
Ade Ayeyemi, Group CEO of Ecobank said: “It gives all of us at Ecobank great pride to be recognized as not only the Best Retail Bank in Africa, but also the Most Innovative. This is a further proof that we are on the right track in our quest to be the bank of choice for middle Africa. We will continue to ensure that we are at the forefront of harnessing state-of-the-art technology to provide our customers with accessible and affordable banking services.”
The bank, which is found in most parts of Africa, is committed to providing the range of financial products and services that meet the day-to-day banking, transactional and investment needs of all Africans. The bank stated that it enjoyed a 40 percent increase in customer numbers during 2017 and the bank aims to serve 100 million customers by the end of 2020 Ecobank Group CEO Ade Ayeyemi disclosed.
The Ecobank Mobile App aims to deliver real convenience to customers and with its removal of barriers to entry, at affordable price points, is an integral part of Ecobank’s strategy. It is the first unified banking application across 33 countries and enables customers to do their banking activities where and when they want, 24/7 and 365 days a year, conveniently on their mobile phones. It allows transactions in 18 different currencies and in four languages (English, French, Portuguese and Spanish).
The bank’s app includes the multi-featured digital payment solution, which enables customers of any bank to pay for goods or services. It unifies all of Ecobank’s digital payment offerings for internet payments, paying bills and airtime top-ups by mobile.
Patrick Akinwuntan, Group Executive, Consumer Banking said: “Ecobank represents more possibilities for every African. Our Ecobank Mobile App — Xpress Account, Ecobank Pay, Xpress Points and Rapidtransfer — are fast becoming top-of-mind consumer banking brands that represent convenience, affordability and instant fulfillment to our customers across Africa and in the diaspora.”