Clients welcome new banking application

“Standard Bank Namibia customers have welcomed the newly introduced electronic channel. The convenience of being able to do banking on the go has become a requirement from customers and is something that our new Cellphone Banking service is able to satisfy,” said Surihe Gaomas-Guchu, PR & Communications Manager at Standard Bank. Gaomas-Guchu was responding to enquires from The Economist about the progress of the implementation of the Bank’s recently launched cellphone banking service. She said, the implementation of the application was put through vigorous testing and was firstly launched internally to Standard Bank Namibia staff members for further testing in order to iron out all the creases before launching to the public. “So there are no glitches,” she added. “Almost everyone owns a cellphone and it is something you carry around with you through most of your day, making cellphone banking very convenient. One of the main features of Cellphone Banking is convenience. That’s why a lot of effort was put in to ensuring that requirements for this feature are fully met,” said Gaomas-Guchu. She further said that the application is easy to understand and navigate and more importantly it can be used on any type of mobile phone. “Registration for Cellphone banking is as easy as calling the Customer Care Centre (on the toll free number 081 9286) where a friendly consultant will assist customers with the registration process and queries. Customers would only be required to visit their branch if their current mobile number does not match the one registered on the Bank’s system,” she said. When asked why the Bank has taken so long to introduce this facility to its customers while customers from other Banks have been enjoying the convenience of the cellphone banking system, Gaomas-Guchu said the Bank has been looking for a Core Banking system that will meet and address the needs of its customers. The system change allowed the Bank to introduce products and services that address the needs of its customers. “In today’s world, technology is moving our societies and we had to relate to the nature of doing business in this fast paced world. Standard Bank Namibia’s new Cellphone Application truly speaks to the term “banking on the go.” No longer will customers be limited by their geographical locations or by fixed business hours. With Cellphone banking it is possible to check your account balances, transact at anytime and anywhere,” she added.