Friday, January 11, 2008 Telco inks deal with bank
WIRELESS service provider Smart Communications Inc. and China Banking Corp. have teamed up to offer
Filipino contract workers in Saudi Arabia an affordable alternative means to send remittances.
Under the remittance agreement, China Bank will utilize Smart’s mobile commerce platform, the Smart Services Hub System, which will facilitate the transfer of remittances that are sent through China Bank’s partner bank, the National Commercial Bank (NCB).
Also known as Alahli Bank, NCB is the largest bank in Saudi Arabia with almost 300 branches throughout the kingdom. The remittances will be electronically and securely loaded within seconds to a China Bank On-time Remittance-Smart Money card and may be withdrawn as cash in the Philippines using the card at any of the 5,000 ATMs in the country or through almost 100 Smart Wireless Centers.
Both the sender and recipient will be notified via a text message that the remittance transaction has been completed.
The Smart Services Hub, which was announced during the 2007 3GSM World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, will serve as a platform for China Bank’s remittance service — China Bank On-time Remittance — enabling the bank to provide overseas Filipino workers with cheaper and faster means to send their money home.
“We are very pleased to provide China Bank with our tried and tested mobile commerce solutions,” said Smart president and chief executive officer Napoleon L. Nazareno. (PR)
