NMB, UBX partner to extend banking services access

 Daily News reporter

DAR ES SALAAM: THE Deputy Minister for Finance, Hamad Hassan Chande has commended NMB Bank and UBX Tanzania Limited for partnering in a single ATM network to enhance formal financial inclusion.

In this partnership, NMB will enter into a strategic partnership with UBX Tanzania Limited which operates the Umoja Switch ATM Network having 17 Umoja Switch partner banks under a single ATM network.

He said in Dar es Salaam recently that the strategic interoperability partnership is a landmark moment for the Tanzania banking sector as it creates the first broadest shared system of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs).

“NMB-UBX partnership adds significant value to efforts of the government to increase the number of people accessing formal financial services to reach 85 per cent by 2025,” he said.

He called upon other banks to join NMB and the Umoja Switch network. The strategic partnership sees the successful connection of Umoja Switch’s 280 ATMs with over 700 NMB Bank’s ATMs, marking a new era of accessibility and efficiency in banking services across the country.

NMB Bank’s Chief Executive Officer Ms Ruth Zaipuna said, “This partnership will afford our customers easy access to banking services.

Now our customers at their convenience can access affordable and reliable banking services at over 1,000 ATM points across the country.

That is the dividend of this partnership,” She said this partnership is also going to reduce the operational costs of the participating banks since all local transactions will no longer need to be processed offshore.

She said also that the partnership will increase card usage at ATMs in the country and reduce queues at bank branches, offering an alternative method to enhance formal financial inclusion in the country.

The UBX Board Chairman, Mr Sabasaba Moshingi, said when Umoja Switch took off in 2006 with six members whereby only 30 ATMs could hardly serve 2,000 customers.

This revolutionary partnership, however, makes it more feasible and cost-efficient for the partners to extend many of the traditional functions of the branch into the most remote and challenging environments.

“Indeed, this partnership highlights the shared commitment to bridging the digital and financial divide. By leveraging technology, and collaboration, we aim to empower underserved populations and promote economic growth,” he said.

He said participating banks will reach remote areas that were previously difficult for a single institution to access by deploying ATMs.

This collaboration enhances efficiency and significantly reduces ATM transaction costs for customers of these 17 banks who were using NMB ATMs and NMB customers who were using these banks’ ATMs by over 70 percent.