STAFF REPORT IBD: Pakistans premier branchless banking service, Easypaisa, has launched Khushaal Munafa, the first savings product on a branchless banking platform offering monetary returns to its Easypaisa mobile account customers. The initiative is yet another important step towards the financial inclusion of rural and semi-urban Pakistanis who have no choice today but to save their funds in informal savings.
Khushaal Munafa offers Easypaisa mobile account customers a profit of up to 9 per cent on saving Rs 2,000 or more in their mobile accounts. “The profit offered by Khushaal Munafa is also unique in the sense that it is calculated on a daily basis and the profit is transferred in the mobile accounts at the end of each month,” said Roar Bjaerum, Chief Financial Services Officer at Telenor Pakistan.
He said that this product will focus on micro savings, reducing vulnerability of low income families to unexpected events and promote savings as a way to increase their opportunities to grow and improve quality of lives.
In his remarks, Nadeem Hussain, CEO and President, Tameer Micro Finance Bank, said: “Khushaal Munafa will help create a financial ecosystem for the bottom of the pyramid and empower them with the basic rights to avail services that provide an affordable and convenient method of integration into the world of financial services.”
Currently, there are four different savings plans under Khushaal Munafa being offered to Mobile Account customers with minimum balance requirements ranging from Rs 2,000 to Rs 25,000.