Mobile money company TNM Mpamba Limited will be foregoing revenue in excess of K240 million in the next three months as it strives to keep customers connected at no fee.
TNM Mpamba, a subsidiary of TNM Plc rakes in an estimated K80 million per month from transactional fees and charges.
But following the outbreak of Coronavirus (Covid-19), the mobile money operator has frozen the fees for the next three months to ease the financial burden on customers.
Further, the mobile money operator see the move as its contribution to the “development of a digital financially enabled society.”
“At TNM Mpamba, we put the lives of our customers at heart. This decision empowers our customers to transact electronically and reduce the physical exchange of cash, which is one of main conduits for the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic that has devastated economies worldwide. This will also enable our customers to complete most of financial transactions in the confines of homes and in cases where they have limited movement,” said Michiel Buitelaar TNM Plc Chief Executive Officer.
He said TNM opted to completely scrap of the fees although the minimum precocity was to retain K20 for the operations of the National Switch Centre.
“Instead TNM will be paying K20 to Natswitch from our other revenue lines for every transfer that our Mpamba customers make,” he said.
The TNM CEO also announced that they have also increased the daily transaction and account holding limits on both personal and Agent accounts.
“The maximum value for individuals have been increased to K1.5 million from K750,000 while a personal account can now hold up to K2 million at any point in time as approved by the Reserve Bank. TNM Mpamba is also providing merchant wallets, which enables customers to make payments to merchants and specialized institutions without being charged fees,” he said.
The development comes following a meeting The Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) held with Mobile Money Operators, SACCOs and Microfinance institutions in Lilongwe recently.
Health experts have highlighted exchange of paper money in financial transactions as a potential area for transmission of Coronavirus hence mobile money is a smart option to reduce spreading of the virus through physical handling of currency.
TNM Mpamba Limited has announced that all person-to-person transfers within the Mpamba Network free for the next three months starting Wednesday 23rd April 2020. The fee waiver also applies on all transfers going to other Mobile Money Operators via the National Switch.
Buitelaar said the zero-rating of person to person transfers will enable Malawians to help their friends and family members financially through instant money transfers to them irrespective of where they are in the country around the clock. He also noted TNM Mpamba has also implemented several other measures beyond the recommendations of their meeting with RBM.
According to RBM Governor, Dr. Dalitso Kabambe, the new measures are part of Malawi’s efforts to prevent the spread of Covid-19 and mitigating its effects as electronic payments also greatly enhance social distancing during this pandemic.
TNM Mpamba has over 2.5 million customers in Malawi.
Apart from the Mpamba interventions above, other TNM measures in the Covid-19 fight include provision of free internet access for public schools learning resources, provision of connectivity for Virtual Doctors and an on-going SMS awareness campaign on Coronavirus preventative measures.
