Experts dispel fears of PSBs’ threat to Banks
By Oghale Mafuru
As the financial sector continues to democratise its services to allow for more participation of non-industry actors, experts in the Integrated Marketing Communications industry have dismissed concerns that the operations of Payment Service Banks, PSBs by telcos pose a huge threat to traditional commercial banks.
Speaking to MARKETING EDGE, Kolawole Oyeyemi, Chief Executive officer of Axiom Intel Limited espoused that the inclusion of the telcos into the financial sector in Nigeria was inevitable noting that the continued evolution of technology has rapidly disrupted the operations of industries and sectors which is necessary for growth.
He said: “It is a global issue that the Nigerian government or the financial system in Nigeria cannot prevent. These are global trends. If you go to Europe or America, there is a lot of digital banking; infrastructures have evolved through the telcos. It is something that has been on for now and Nigeria cannot be an exception. It is only a matter of time before Nigeria gets involved.
Highlighting the benefits of the democratization of financial services in the country, marketing professionals dismissed concerns that the Payment Services Banks will rival traditional banks by positing that the PSBs have permissible areas of operation mandated by the Central Bank and that traditional banks are beginning to explore technology to birth digital financial solutions.
“What you are seeing in Nigeria in terms of the PSB and other services like mobile money is just Nigeria catching up with the global trend in terms of financial services delivery and financial inclusion on a global level. Whether the traditional banks like it or not, it is a reality they have to deal with. Quite a number of them have also been anticipating this and you find out that a couple of them have sprung up their own version of digital banks in a bid to compete with the telcos at a digital level” he stressed.
For his part, Richard Iweanoge, Chief Executive Officer at Papyrus Digital Solutions, succinctly explained that the inclusion of telecom companies into the financial sector wields no sword against traditional players as the focus is to drive financial inclusion to the unbanked Nigerians especially those in the rural settlements.
According to him, the telecommunications companies have the required infrastructure and subscriber bases to achieve this goal which will stimulate economic activities at the grassroots through the provision of financial services.
“Telecom has the customer base and the infrastructure. It is an evolving space. I don’t have a problem with telecoms playing in that space. The telecos have the lists of subscribers who have devices, who can access the internet, and those services through them. They have all the infrastructures required and know all their customers. So, it is a natural step to offer them payment services.
Speaking further, he stated that “If we want to do the things we have always done, then the world will never move forward. The world keeps evolving as technology improves. So, banking as it was defined before is different from what it is now under the new technology we have”.
According to him, if the banks want to have financial inclusion for all Nigerians, the best partner will be the telecom companies because they already have almost all Nigerians on their platform.
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