IF the results of a mobile banking pilot in the countryside is anything to go by, then Filipinos are ready for cellphone-driven financial services.

Dubbed as the Banking the Unbanked (BTU) project, this is the country’s first cohesive attempt to provide branchless, cashless banking services to the countryside, using one of the most ubiquitous tools of today—the mobile phone.

The program was implemented by PlaNet Finance Group through its subsidiary company, mBank Holding (MBH), in partnership with leading wireless services provider, Smart Telecommunications, to benefit members of the low income market who also have little or no access to formal banking services.

The 18-month pilot utilized Smart’s award-winning Smart Money platform to provide mobile-based financial solutions such as micro-savings and micro-loan services to a test market of Smart and Talk ‘N Text subscribers composed of farmers, airtime retailers, market vendors and other low-income earners, who remitted capital build-up deposits and loan amortizations using their Smart mobile phones.

What sets the BTU apart from other mobile-based initiatives is that all transactions—from Know Your Customer (KYC) processes, account activations, capital-build ups, loan disbursements and collections—happen over the air. It is secure, cashless and paperless mobile banking in its truest sense, made possible by Smart Money’s menu-based financial solutions such as micro savings and micro loan services.

Once launched commercially, the offerings of the BTU project will be rolled out to different locations in the Philippines, and potentially, other countries.

“This project was launched to let members of the underserved sector enjoy the full range mobile banking services despite their geographical and income limitations. We are happy that our efforts have helped revolutionize mobile banking services in the countryside,” said Arnaud Ventura, co-founder of mBank Holding, and PlaNet Finance, and president and chief executive officer of MicroCred.

Added Tricia Dizon, Smart Financial Services Head, “Smart’s participation in the BTU project underscores our commitment to provide affordable, relevant and accessible financial services to Filipinos. Through our tried and tested mobile money platform and Smart’s ‘nationwidest’ coverage, we hope to pave the way for more inclusive financial services that will benefit the unserved and underserved communities of the Philippines.”

The BTU has a huge potential to benefit Smart’s predominantly prepaid market, many of which have limited access to formal banking services. As of June 2012, Smart had 50.9 million subscribers on its GSM network, about 98 percent of which are prepaid. This is supported by Smart’s extensive and modern digital communications infrastructure—covering all of the country’s 1,629 cities and municipalities.

The pilot has demonstrated a demand for accessible and easy-to-use financial services that will allow subscribers to save in an account, transfer money, receive funds, reload airtime, and pay loan amortizations. The pilot also demonstrated the importance of having a reliable and extensive network to make such an effort successful.

The BTU Project complements other Smart offerings that provide seamless and efficient mobile commerce and banking solutions to the unbanked sector. Smart Money is currently being utilized to disburse loans for airtime reloading to micro-entrepreneurs under the Hapinoy program.

Smart has also successfully rolled out its Islands Activations Program to 58 remote Philippine locations to enable Filipinos to perform money transfers via Smart-powered mobile phones. Just recently, Smart was tapped by the United States Agency for International Development for its Scaling Innovations in Mobile Money project, which seeks to boost mobile money transactions in the country using Smart Money.

Its efforts to provide more accessible banking services have also earned Smart local and international recognition. Smart was the only Philippine telecommunication compay to receive a Mobile Money for the Unbanked fund Grant from the GSM Association.

In addition, for providing underserved markets with communication and microenterprise opportunities, Smart also received the Best Mobile Money Service award at the 2009 Asian Mobile Awards held in Hong Kong, and the 2008 World Business and Development Award given by the International Chamber of Commerce, Prince of Wales International Business Leaders Forum and United Nations Development Program in New York City.

This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.