Software Group unveils Fast-track Agency Banking in Nigeria

Software Group, a global financial technology provider, has unveiled its Fast-track Agency Banking software for Nigerian banks that want to expand their reach at speed and competitive cost.

Fast-track Agency Banking is an off-the-shelf solution with standard features for the key transactions, fully managed on the cloud and powered by Software Group’s DigiWave banking platform for overall digital transformation, according to a statement by Ms. Wairimu Gikenye.

The new software service comes as agency banking is growing exponentially across Nigeria.

Some top Nigerian banks have recently added millions of customers through agents, and more than doubled agency transaction volumes.

This recent surge in agency transactions and agents has lifted the proportion of Nigerian adults with a financial account, in line with the financial inclusion policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

However, that growth still leaves come gap, if the 95 per cent National Financial Inclusion target by 2024 is to be realised.

“There is still much to do to deliver financial services to the 38 million Nigerian adults who remain completely unbanked,” said Connor Hanan, Software Group’s CEO Africa and Middle East, was quoted as saying.

The CEO added “With millions of adults still in need of financial services, and access reported as one of the greatest barriers, our software development has been driven by the need to accelerate the creation of agency networks.

“Using the new managed service, banks can create and roll out agency banking in little more than one month and at a set price that reflects their budget, saving on operational cost and development time.”

In a 2021 report, Enhancing Financial innovation & Access (EFInA) identified access to banks as one of the three biggest barriers to using traditional banks among Nigerian adults.

Software Group has emerged as a leader in agency banking, having successfully implemented agency banking software in over 20 countries.

Using its vast experience, the company has taken key components from its robust agency banking solution and put them onto a platform in the cloud for the Nigerian launch.

As a result, Nigerian banks can quickly integrate the platform service directly with their core banking software, in just weeks, buying as many features as they like and upgrading whenever they need to.

Connor stated further, “In simple terms, with Nigeria having broken into agency banking in a meaningful way in only the last 30 months, we are launching a new managed agency software where we have done everything to provide a ready-made platform.

“It covers all key operations like customer acquisition, deposits, withdrawals, liquidity management, mini statements, and balance enquiries, creates dashboards and reporting, so market penetration can be achieved faster and more cost-effectively.

“We genuinely believe this entirely new approach can now fuel further agency growth and an acceleration to reach the country’s inclusion targets.”