By Lateef Adegbite
Not many are surprised that the United Bank For, UBA, plc, popular, Pan African Bank, under the close watch of Oliver Alawuba, appears to have simplified digital banking operations in Nigeria and 20 other African countries. Also, the bank currently has branches win the United Kingdom, UK, the North American country of the United States, US, and United Arab Emirate, UAE, Saudi Arabia, France.
The bank, according to an insider source has one of the largest distribution networks in Africa, with over 1,000 branches and customer touchpoints across the African continent fully operating online banking.
The bank had outlined a roadmap for its 2025, trading year, with strong focus on’’ innovation, digital transformation, physical and financial strength and global reach’’. Alawuba, the Group Managing Director of the Money Deposit Bank, MDB, who appears determined to make difference, in banking operations in the African Continent through’’ strategic investments in technology’’ was said to have pursued it to its logical conclusion by carrying everybody along.
The fallout was ‘’the upgrade of the bank’s Point of -Sale, POS, terminals’’ to meet the demand of its over 45 million customers globally and ‘’to deliver seamless, secure and efficient payment experiences whilst ensuring compliance’’ with Olayemi Michael Cardoso led Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, requirements in all jurisdictions.
The UBA PLC, Group Managing Director, GMD, who was said to have mobilized the Retail and Digital Staff to take another look on its digital technology geared towards delivering customer- focused value propositions that will simplify business with the bank POS, was said to have hit the ground running.
He may have been encouraged to step up the bank investments on its digital technology because of the repeated complaints by customers of delays in payments in POS transactions and even when transactions are conducted, it is credited the next working day and not same day.
More worrisome was the regular hanging of money for transactions conducted due to poor services and the customer debited for a failed transaction and a decline receipt is printed by the POS service provider.
. The situation was so bad in Lagos, the nation’s Commercial nerve center, which have a large number of Customers as the bank branches were said to have continued to attend to customers who have one complaint or the other over non – payment or money transferred to a client that was never delivered but debited. The Value News online Magazine had suffered such a problem in one of the Supermarkets at Owode, Ogun state.
While the other MDBs, are still struggling to overcome the identified challenges with the operation of the POS, UBA plc, Customers at pesent, no longer experience such problems as the bank has unveiled its vastly improved POS Terminal as well as the bank MONI App ‘’to redefine ‘’the digital payment landscape and empowering Small and Medium Scale Enterprises, SMEs, across the African Continent’’.
This may have informed why Alawuba, the UBA plc’s GMD, could beat his chest that that it has overcome its POS, technical problems.This is because with the bank’s new POS terminal, customers now ‘’enjoy same -day settlement for faster cash flow and track sales easily on the dashboard to get quick dispute resolutions.
The upgraded UBA plc, digital platforms, according to an informed source form part of the MDBs ongoing campaign with the theme: Innovation in progress, Empowering SMEs, Connecting Communities and Simplifying banking operations in Nigeria and other African countries
Alawuba, the Pan African Bank, GMD, has a word of advice to large corporate and growing business which currently patronize the services of tPOS terminals, that there was no cause for alarm as its POS terminal, particular, have been upgraded to ensure that its operations run smoothly.
The improved POS, which an insider had confirmed provides customers ‘’the required efficiency and ease in transacting their businesses ‘’, was said to have been equipped with exciting new features designed ‘’to boost efficiency, transparency and trust for merchants’’.
This is in addition to providing instant settlements instead of waiting for five working days to get paid. The unveiled new POS, was said to have also given the bank the ample opportunity for ‘’real -time monitoring of the activities of the merchants in their various locations across the African Continent to avoid dragging the name of the bank to the mud.
The upgraded POS facility was said to have equally helped the bank to institute pay -by-link functionality and a 100% transaction success rate in the recent time and which have been confirmed by customers, who spoke to the Value News online Magazine in different parts of Lagos, and the neighbouring Ogun state.
There is no gain saying the fact that with the improved POS, services delivered by agents of the bank across the African continent, can show signs of ‘’flexibility’’ as the terminals have been equipped to serve businesses of all sizes, providing the speed, reliability and fast-speed services demanded by today’s merchants.
Even the MONI, which was said to have been designed to further strengthen the UBA plc agency banking network which was said to have also been modified with new features including instant settlement, pay by -transfer transactions, secret question security, an enhanced inbox and redesigned homepage offering ‘’agents and customers more intuitive and secure experience’’.
Suffice it to say that that MONI, equally have its core features of instant Account Opening with BVN/NIN, real-time transfers, cash deposits and withdrawals, airtime and data payments with agent discounts just as instant POS deployment was said to have remained at the heart of the app.
Shamsideen Fashola, the bank’s Group Head, Retail and Digital Banking, may have gladdened the heart of customers when he asserted that as a forward- thinking financial institution in the African Continent, it is always on the look-out for modern ways ‘’to improve their services and offerings,’’ to give customers to-notch experiences while conducting their daily transactions and businesses’’.
The UBA plc, digital guru, may have thrown a challenge to his Counterparts in other banks across the country, particular, when he disclosed that the officials of the MDB, are constantly innovating ‘’to provide seamless and secure payment solutions for businesses of all sizes’’.
He was emphatic that the new POS and MONI app is designed ‘’to empower merchants and agency banking with instant settlements, real-transaction tracking, and unmatched reliability ‘’ – ensuring that they can focus on growing their businesses with a trusted partner.
The UBA plc Group Head, Retail and Digital Banking did not stop there. He had said that ‘’the next generation POS, would not only be a payment device, but a powerful tool that will help businesses to grow and stay competitive in a fast- paced economy’’.
He is optimistic that with the bank’s extensive reach and robust digital infrastructure, it will continue to bring convenience and confidence to every transaction’’., stressing that with the upgraded MONI app, the bank is also equipping its agents, many of them serve smaller Communities in different parts of the country including the various districts and areas in Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory, FCT.
He noted that the agents are using the faster tools to serve their customers in the various Communities across the African Continent for greater transparency and an enhanced user experience that would go a long way ‘’to help them grow their businesses while serving millions of other underserved customers. Vintage UBA plc.
