Remu DTM leverage on PesaPoint card payments network for growth

Bernard Matthewman, CEO Paynet Group exchnage
agreements with Remu CEO, Lydia Kibaara 

Remu deposit taking micro finance institution(DTM), will leverage on PesaPoint’s ATM and Point of Sale network to   enhance its geographic spread  and efficiency in service delivery  by affording its clients access to their cash at all corners of the country  on a 24hours basis

Richard Coate PesaPoint's Managing Director
 takes Lydia Kibaara CEO of Remu DTM
 through PesaPoint's 'We are here to help campaign'
onlooking is Bernard Matthewman 

This announcement was made today by the institution’s CEO, Lydia Kibaara, who said that the DTM planned to exploit PesaPoint’s expansive card and card-less pay points to deliver cash access to its clients countrywide.  “Indeed, PesaPoint’s network is strategically placed and well spread to offer Remu the right platform to realise its expansion programme of serving all the 47 counties as the mid-term strategy”

Remu becomes the second DTM and fourth non-bank institution to turn to PesaPoint to deliver the convenience of 24 hour card payments after Faulu DTM, Stima and Mwalimu SACCOs. Effectively, the PesaPoint financial network now serves over 33 partner financial institutions, 29 of which are fully fledged banks, making it largest inter-bank financial network in the region.

Bernard Matthewman, CEO of the Paynet Group of companies, which PesaPoint belongs praised Remu for their foresight, saying the initial vision of PesaPoint was to bring financial services infrastructure to parts of the market where it had been lacking from either a geographic or market segment perspective.

“We want every ATM and agent in the country to serve any customer regardless of which bank issued their card. The benefit of this shared inter-bank network to the consumer is initially convenience but increased efficiency in the medium term should lead to lower transaction costs. Banks and financial institutions sharing their infrastructure with PesaPoint stand to benefit from tapping into the universal cardholder base to grow their non-interest revenue,” he said.

Powered by the PesaPoint Interconnect engine, Paynet has grown the new interbank- network into Kenya’s most expansive card acquiring infrastructure in two years, and it now compose  its own ATMs, hundreds of shared ATMs owned by 5 leading banks and an extensive Point of Sale (POS) based Agency banking network. Bankers have referred to the PesaPoint’s POS network as a “super agency banker” because customers for all 33 PesaPoint partners, including those whose banks do not have agency banking platforms are able access their funds through it.

Remu clients will also use any ATM with the sign “PesaPoint Available” at banks such as DTB, Family Bank, KCB, NIC and CfC Stanbic, all of whom are members of the PesaPoint interconnect payments network. Thus added Mr. Matthewman: “Smart banks continue to share their ATMs and other points of service through the PesaPoint interconnect engine, and as at now, we have projects with more banks that are waiting to go live on the PesaPoint Interconnect engine.”

Ms Kibaara said the REMU fraternity was excited about the partnership with PesaPoint saying it would provide the right payments platform to enhance outreach and financial deepening through the DTM.

Remu is licensed and regulated by Central Bank of Kenya under the Microfinance Act to undertake nationwide deposit taking business.  While it has been in operation for the last two years with branches in Nairobi and Meru Counties, it projects to lay down national presence leveraging on branch network and technology such as ATMs and mobile banking, according to Ms Kibaara.