Standard Chartered bank has come up with a new banking App dubbed the “Digital Bank” that offers all banking services available at its banking halls to its clients at the tip of the finger on one’s smart mobile phone.
The App offers convenience to customers leveraging on existing technologies, digitizing 70 common service requests with features that allows self-registration for a bank account by taking a snap shot of one’s proof of residence and a “selfie” then upload it to the App instantly, updating every bank detail such as changing one’s password and self-block one’s account among other features.
It further allows one to request a bank loan, to even requesting VISA letters from the bank which will be sent online without one frequenting the banking hall to access these services.
“Our digital bank was developed with our clients in mind. We have taken into consideration their feedback at each stage of the design process, and have incorporated innovative technology to allow them to execute all banking activities from a mobile phone via the Standard Chartered Bank App – SC Mobile Zimbabwe,” head of retail banking for Standard Chartered bank, Valeta Mthimkhulu said at the launch of the App.
The bank is also using this App to reach out to a larger market base of Zimbabwe’s youth that is fast embracing the wave of digital solutions sweeping across the vast African continent.
This launch in Zimbabwe is the first of phase Two, of the bank’s “Africa roll” initiative that will also see it proceed to Zambia and Botswana after having launched in Ivory Coast, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Ghana in 2018.
The bank is leveraging on Zimbabwe’s smart phone penetration estimated at 50 percent and LTE, 3G and 2G networks accounting for 90 percent of the 7.2 million internet connections.
“We believe this is the time to enhance our retail business with the strong demand we see for digital banking in Zimbabwe. Standard Chartered Bank Zimbabwe has a high digital penetration with 88 percent of our clients using mobile banking, 72 percent online banking and 92 percent using the Debit Card. Mobile remains entrenched as the most dominant form of access to the national payments system with 6 million active subscribers in Zimbabwe,” Bank Chairman, Lovemore Manatsa said.
While the spread of digital solutions to banking is fast eclipsing conventional jobs, the bank is also training its staff to fit into new jobs that arise from the wave of digitization.
In 2017, the Bank invested US$ 400 million in its digital banking operations globally, in pursuit of achieving its retail banking business fully digital by year 2020.
The digital bank is available by downloading the Standard Chartered mobile app- SC Mobile Zimbabwe, for free via both Google Play Store and the Apple Store.
