Remittance through Mobile Phones and the Internet: Searching for the Viable Business Model Lee Eng Sia Founder, Managing Director, Mobile Money International Malaysia
E money Remittance Version 14 May 2014
Mobile Money Background Started in year 2005, operates e money and real time information platform. We are the pioneer of next generation money (specific purpose money, including specific targeted subsidy) Operates in Malaysia, Indonesia, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, and getting started in 6 other countries. Plan to expand to entire African continent, providing real time visibility to businesses, and building e money infrastructure in parallel.
Concept of MM e Money Remittance Service User registers as member of Mobile Money with a RFID card. Members can top up various types of e money for various services. Eg. Remittance, paying bill, buy prepaid, pay TV vouchers, etc.
E money Remittance Process User phone to register, with name, IC, and recipient bank account, moving towards MM community service centres using android app to take a photo of the IC or passports for registration. (almost done) User given a member card, which is a RFID card, tied to user and recipient bank account. User goes to MM community service centres to purchase e money for remittance. MM shall send a SMS for confirmation, to ask for confirmation on the amount user wants to send with the recipient name for them to call to confirm. Upon confirmation,money in bank account instantly, and sender shall receive a sms confirming the transaction once it is successful (close loop confirmation)
Real Time Controls via CRM Maximum amount one can send is USD900 at any one time. Total cumulative amount one can send in a month (9k USD) Bank account that receives from multiple senders. (call to verify, usually is village head) Maximum number of bank account one can send. (5) Red Flag, call to further verify on those who send more than certain amount. (3k usd) Real time checking against black list.
Risk? Small amount. Average USD220. Real time monitoring, Real time checking. Real time control. KYCN (Know Your Customer Network) available if needed, phone and bank account of recipient. Photos taken with time stamp. Better than a clerk who tries to remember faces of foreigners that looks alike or using fake documents.
Way Forward for e Money Remittance? KYCN enforce the requirement of 20 phone number call history from Telco. KYC via app using android apps to register, by taking and keeping a copy of the photo and document. Customer Due diligence via app android app to take real time photo for Customer Due Diligence. Time stamp on photo taken. Education of service centres -- Using Android apps to conduct test on service centres to improve their awareness and education on AML and ATF. Central data base -- Centralised real time tracking and checking for all transactions to detect any dubious transactions.(against UN blacklist and local black list). Provide Mobile to Mobile, Mobile to Person cross border transfer with KYCN
Challenges for Regulators in Developing Countries KYC mind-set. This seems to be the only thing regulators understand. Its outdated in view of new technologies available. How to think KYCN instead of KYC? How to adopt regulations that make use of innovation and technology, that are a lot more effective? Central data base, promote e money, KYCN, android apps. All this are available NOW How to fight illegal channel. Developing countries need more channel to fight illegals. This is only possible if we have sensible, simple and effective regulations that keep up with technology. How not to promote illegal channel? Remove non sensible KYC requirements, adopt KYCN, promote e money. Separate elephants from ants. Reduce illegal activities. Illegals look for illegal channel. It spawns the growth of illegal channel. How to separate elephants and ants? Different regulations for different segments. Small amount, workers, single transaction a month, with phone and sent to bank account, with real time monitoring and control versus big amount, repeated transaction, with no real time monitoring and control.eg. Banks.
Questions? Cash versus e money, Mobile E money establishes its own KYCN. We know a person s network and traceability. A thug keeps or carries million cash, no traceability. When a person with a phone carries 200 USD in e money, it has KYCN and traceability. Why do we need stringent KYC that strangles e money, promotes cash and thus illegal activities, WHY? Why would a poor country in Africa, with people worrying about food, no proper water supply or electricity, no ID cards, keeping or sending on average of USD20, why do we need paper KYC even with sufficient KYCN, and real time e money visibility, WHY? If KYCN is so simple, so obvious and so effective, why can t regulators adopt it? WHY?