Dubai-based firm launches ‘$250m’ payment platform for banks, telcos

The Network International, a Dubai-based financial services firm, has announced the launch of its cloud-based and integrated payment suite, known as Network One.

The technology infrastructure would serve banks and telecommunications operators, the organisation said at a media briefing in Lagos on Wednesday.

Network International said deploying the platform in Nigeria aligns with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) directive for in-country transaction routing — enhancing its local processing capabilities.

The payments services company said the “$250 million” platform is now ready to onboard financial technology firms (fintechs) and other financial institutions and mobile network operators (MNOs) in Nigeria and the West African region.

Nandan Mer, group chief executive officer (CEO) of Network International, told TheCable that digital payments play a crucial role in the growth of economies and businesses.

Buttressing his view, he said cash is expensive to handle as countries spend a lot of money producing, transporting, and securely storing cash.

“Cash also moves very slowly, and the faster cash changes hands, the more you can do with that cash. The speed of payments is also important for any economy, because the velocity of payments, determines the ability for that money to be put back into productive use. That is where the role of electronic payments comes in,” he said.

Further speaking on the rationale for launching the platform, he said electronic payments also reduce the cost of moving money from one point to another quickly, so that money can be “redeployed faster”.

According to Mer, every 1 percent of the money that is translated from cash to electronic payments over a five-year period can result in “a point 4 percent increase in GDP”.

“So electronic payments have a direct correlation with the enhancement of or the increase of the GDP of a country, and that’s why we go back to our purpose,” he said.

“Our purpose is to help businesses and economies grow by simplifying payments and simplifying commerce. So that is what we are doing here in Nigeria.”

On his part, Reda Helal, the company’s group managing director of processing in Africa, said Network International intends to create a safe environment for a digital payment ecosystem to ensure that Nigerians and Africans can transact safely and conveniently in a manner that will enable them to resort to digital payment “and venture away from cash”.

‘GOVERNMENT PROGRAMMES PATH TO ACCELERATING FINANCIAL INCLUSION’

Helal, also the organisation’s co-head of group processing, disclosed that Network International was part of the initial discussion on financial inclusion and the cashless society initiative 20 years ago.

In line with this, he said the company has partnered with tech operators because they “have outreach which is far beyond the conventional banks”.

“So, our purpose today is to hydrate the digital payments ecosystem in Nigeria to ensure those in remote places — not only here or Abuja — but everyone who can have access to a phone, it doesn’t have to be a digital or a smartphone, will have the ability to transact digitally without resorting even to a bank,” Helal said.

Also commenting on accelerating financial inclusion in Nigeria, Mer said the federal government has “a strong” role to play, noting that the path to accelerated financial improvement is government-sponsored programmes.

He said the government needs to put in place a financial inclusion target for all ecosystem participants, stressing that the initiative has grown rapidly where there have been government-sponsored domestic payment programmes.

“I’m not saying that this is the government’s responsibility. I’m just saying that when government gets involved, it becomes a tremendous force for good,” he said.

“And it has been proven in many other markets. China created a scheme called China union payment and accelerated digital inclusion, use of digital payment tools.”

The group CEO also urged ecosystem players to embrace government policies and infrastructure, assuring that Network International would be the first to adopt such policies when they are rolled out in Nigeria.