Race is on between banks and mobile operators for your money Low levels of formal banking services in emerging economies, together with high smartphone penetration, provide near perfect conditions for growth of mobile payments BL PREMIUM 17 February 2021 - 20:35 Mudiwa Gavaza
A new partnership between MTN and MasterCard has given mobile payments in Africa yet another boost. Over the past decade, emerging market economies in Asia and Africa have been at the forefront of mobile payments innovation, with the likes of China’s WeChat or Kenya’s M-Pesa seen as leaders in their fields.
Low levels of formal banking services in these economies, together with high smartphone penetration, has provided the perfect recipe for the growth of mobile payments. That said, mobile wallets and other related services have had limitations on the extent or type of payments that can be made. Internet transactions, where the majority of e-commerce is done, has been one such limit.
And although the policewomen said they had additional sources of income, the vetting team found that those financial transactions did not match the M-Pesa and bank statements that were submitted to the commission.
The Court of Appeal judges concluded on December 18 last year that the women, who had served in the police force for a total of 31 years, had handled huge sums of money whose origin they could not explain.
[File, Standard]
For instance, Leiro’s bank account showed that at one time she banked Sh300,000 in six instalments of Sh50,000.
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Sale of watermelon
In her defence, she told the panel that the extra income was from the sale of watermelon she was growing on a 10-acre land at Pekerra Irrigation Scheme in Nakuru County; a project she said fetched her between Sh150,000 and Sh200,000 every season.