Aite Group, a global research and advisory firm, has recognized Cassava Smartech and Comviva as the winners of the 2019 Digital Wallet Innovation Award for EcoCash in the ‘Market Adoption’ category.
The awards, announced at the Mobile Payment
Conference in Chicago, recognize innovation achieved by digital wallet
providers that are changing the way that commerce is done. Winners were
selected by a global panel of five external experts on digital payments and
wallets.
Launched in 2011, EcoCash is Zimbabwe’s largest mobile money service. EcoCash leverages mobile technology to extend digital financial services to financially underserved consumers. EcoCash has over 9.8 million registered customers facilitating financial inclusion for 90% of Zimbabwe’s adult population.
It has digitized various financial transactions in Zimbabwe, ranging from domestic and international remittances and merchant payments, to savings and loans, thus creating a cash-light economy. Over 80% of Zimbabwe’s national payment volume is processed through EcoCash.
Speaking on the win, Eddie Chibi, CEO of Cassava Smartech Zimbabwe, said: “At
Cassava Smartech our aim is to help people live better lives through the
transformative power of mobile money. We shall spare no effort in driving
mobile money services in Africa because we believe that mobile money can do
more to improve lives in Africa than in any other part of the world. In line
with this goal, we aim to continuously improve EcoCash services for a better
tomorrow.”
Anil Krishnan, Head of Africa Region at Comviva, said: “We firmly believe that EcoCash services have been truly transformative
as they provided the key to solving Zimbabwe’s cash problem while improving
financial inclusion. We are very happy to receive this award as it validates
our ability to make a difference with truly transformative solutions.”
Thad
Peterson, senior analyst at Aite Group, said: “We are delighted to recognize and celebrate
innovation achieved by leading digital wallet providers. Digital wallets are
leading an explosion of innovation in the payment ecosystem, and it’s great to
have an opportunity to recognize the leaders of this revolution.”
EcoCash mobile money service is offered by Cassava Smartech and powered
by Comviva’s mobiquity®
Money platform.
mobiquity® Money is the world’s leading mobile money platform that
delivers a host of digital financial services that transform the way consumers
save, borrow, transfer and spend money. It is designed to seamlessly integrate
consumer touch points with a wide ecosystem of banks, billers, merchants and
third-party payment systems, creating a convergence powered by
interoperability.
Apart from delivering convenience to consumers, the solution enables
telecommunications service providers to acquire new customers, create long-term
loyalty with existing ones, and seize new revenue opportunities to increase
their footprint in the market. It has clocked over 60 deployments in more than
45 countries and provides financial services to over 110 million consumers
globally, along with processing more than 6.5 billion transactions amounting to
over $130 billion annually.
