Ecobank To Roll Out Masterpass QR In 33 African Countries

The Ecobank Group announced Thursday (Oct. 20) it has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Mastercard to roll out Masterpass QR, a mobile payment solution, across 33 African countries. This new agreement will give Ecobank the scale and capacity to achieve its 100 million-customer ambition in a profitable and sustainable way by 2020, the company said in a press release.

The MoU signals the largest Masterpass deal of its kind for Mastercard globally, with the QR solution specifically being selected due to Masterpass QR’s ease of use and convenience for merchants and consumers in the selected markets. Ecobank customers in Nigeria already enjoy the benefits of Masterpass QR. Soon, 32 more countries across Africa will receive the benefits of the partnership by the end of 2016.

Masterpass QR is the first mobile-driven, person-to-merchant (P2M) payment solution. The solution is an enhancement to the Masterpass global digital payment service that will enable millions of micro, small and medium enterprises across Africa to begin accepting fast and secure digital payments. This service addresses the challenges of expensive infrastructural issues associated with point-of-sale devices and eliminates the need for cash.

“With partnerships such as the one we have with Mastercard, we are well-positioned to meet the growing demands of consumers and merchants across Africa. We will use Masterpass QR to leverage the power of digital to bring millions of people into the formal financial sector. Our mission at Ecobank is to build a world-class Pan-African bank that contributes to the integration and socioeconomic development of the continent,” said Ade Ayeyemi, Group CEO of Ecobank.

Users of Ecobank’s mobile banking platform across the 33 countries will be able to safely pay for online and in-store purchases by scanning a QR code displayed at checkout on their smartphones or by entering a merchant identifier into their feature phones.