True Money to offer person-to-person payment service

Poom Laupattarakasem, business development executive, said recently that P2P payments were one of the mobile financial services that are available for most personal chequing and money-market accounts. 

Mobile users must have an online profile with a bank, a phone number and an active, unique e-mail address. The application allows customers to transfer money more easily to their friends or family via their telephone number. They do not need to have a bank account. 

Customers also can send a text or e-mail asking others to pay directly from their accounts. 

P2P is an online technology that allows customers to transfer funds from their bank account or credit card to another individual’s account via the Internet or a mobile phone.

It is one of the new mobile financial services that will offer convenience to customers. The firm also provides mobile financial services to customers via True Money mobile applications such as e-wallets.

The firm has racked up 460,000 downloads on iOS and Android from 3 million registered users. Around 30 per cent or 100,000 users are active. The new service will also help customers save money from fees since they can transfer money to their partners free of charge. The firm expects that next year will see a million mobile app downloads.

Jonathan Kaftzan, head of product marketing for mobile financial services at Amdocs, said his firm offered mobile financial solutions worldwide. The business has high potential for growth in this country and the global market since it supports the new behaviours and lifestyles of customers.

Mobile-network operators, banks and other financial institutions can drive adoption of financial services delivered over feature phones or smartphones, addressing the fundamental need of unbanked and under-banked populations worldwide for accessible and affordable banking services.

Users will get a single mobile wallet that they can use to manage and control their finances. It comes with a wide selection of highly secure mobile financial services, from money transfers, bill payments and m-commerce to savings, loans, insurance, loyalty points and top-up transactions. 

By combining this technology with a dedicated set of IT and business accelerator services, the solution helps network operators and financial institutions roll out and operate the solution with maximum cost efficiencies, quickly offering the services users need the most while ensuring the service is reliable and affordable for low-income households, Kaftzan said.

The World Bank and the Bank of Thailand have reported that globally, about 2.5 billion people do not have a bank account and an estimated 1.7 billion have access to a mobile phone. 

In Thailand, 17 per cent of the 77-million population is unbanked. Mobile penetration has hit 138 per cent. 

About 6.1 per cent of financial transactions are made through mobile phones. Mobile transactions increased 19.3 per cent in the first quarter of this year. Online gaming and bill payments drive mobile payments.

Research advisory firm Gartner has reported that the mobile payment market for utility bills, ticketing, top-ups and other transactions will reach US$721 billion (Bt23.8 trillion) by 2017 with more than 450 million users.