Barclays Bank introduces the Pingit mobile service in the Kenyan market, set to bolster Diaspora remittance to Kenya

Nairobi, Kenya

In a bid to steal the march on its competitors, Barclays Bank has announced the launch of Pingit to the Kenyan market, a money transfer service that allows people in Diaspora to sent money to Kenyans

The mobile technology will allow customers to receive money from the United Kingdom (UK), directly from their mobile phones regardless of the phone model, only ten minutes after the time of deposit.

During the launch at the Barclays Kenya new headquarters in Westlands, Barclays Kenya managing director Mr Adan Mohamed, pointed out that they were now well placed to play a key role in mobilizing diaspora money remittance.

“According to the Central Bank of Kenya, annual remittance to Kenya is in excess of one billion US dollars, with a significant amount coming from Europe. With the launch of pingit, Kenya will now be relevant in the international financial market,” said Adan.

The service, which was formerly restricted to the United Kingdom (UK), is the first of its kind in Africa with Kenya as the first African country to hub the programme.

Recipients in Kenya will only be required to be Barclays bank account holders, own a mobile phone and register for the Hallo money services so as to receive money for free from friends, relatives or business associates in the UK.

The money will be credited to the customers’ account at the prevailing market rate.

For senders in the United Kingdom, they will be required to own an account from any bank, have a smart phone then download the pingit application from the internet to be able to enjoy the services. The application is protected by a five digit passcode, set by the user.

“Sending money will be done for free and transactions will only take ten minutes to reach the recipient. The service is limited to sending 750 pounds a day,” said Adan. B

arclays, which has operated in Kenya for over 95 years, has set out plans to introduce the service to 12 other African countries, namely, Botswana, South Africa, Zambia, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, Egypt, Zimbabwe, Uganda, UAE, Seychelles and Mauritius by the end of this year.

Later on further expansion will be extended into Europe in early 2013.

Pingit, which is an Android application is downloadable to people with Smartphones.