Vodafone India, a unit of Vodafone Group Plc (VOD,VOD.L), and ICICI Bank, India's largest private sector bank, launched M-Pesa - mobile money transfer and payment service - in a move to help about 700 million of the country's population who previously had no access to conventional banking.
M-Pesa was launched by Vodafone in 2007 and is now available in eight countries, including Kenya, Tanzania and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The service allows customers to send and receive small amounts of money via their mobile phones as securely and simply as sending a text message.
According to the company, following a successful trial, the service will be offered initially through more than 8,300 specially trained and authorised M-Pesa agents in eastern areas of India, including Kolkata, West Bengal, Bihar and Jharkhand, covering a population of around 220 million people. The service will be rolled out across the rest of India in a phased approach.
The services include the ability to deposit and withdraw cash from designated outlets; transfer money to any mobile phone in India; pay money into any bank account in India; 'Top-up' airtime on a mobile device, pay utility bills and Direct-To-Home television subscriptions; and Make purchases at selected shops.
Vodafone said that M-Pesa had 17.3 million active customers as at 31 December 2012 and currently around 100,000 authorised agents worldwide.
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