MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: Equity Bank, Ingenico, Tracom Enable Cashless Transfer Doorstep Money System for Government Payments in Kenya

Ingenico Group, a French electronic payment company, recently partnered with Kenya-based microfinance software company Tracom and Kenya-based Equity Bank, to create a system to facilitate the use of cashless money to pay “parking, land rates, business permits and market stall fees.” With this new system, “County agents, equipped with Ingenico wireless smart terminals with a specific Revenue Collection application, can now simply collect payments when arriving at the business premises.”

Luciano Cavazzana, the Eastern Europe and Africa managing director for Ingenico, said, “Through this initiative, Tracom and Ingenico Group addresses administrative challenges by providing a quick and convenient fees collection solution to better anchor cashless habits in Kenyan’s daily lives” [1].

In 2015, Ingenico had total revenue of EUR 2.19 billion (equivalent to USD 2.51 billion). As of 2014, Equity Bank has USD 3.0 billion in total assets, a loan portfolio of USD 2.2 billion outstanding to 752,000 borrowers and deposits of USD 2.2 billion from approximately 8.4 million depositors. Financial information on Tracom is not available.

By Jason Wei, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

About Ingenico Group

Ingenico S.A. is a French electronic payment solutions company that services 125 countries with 2,800 employees. In 2015, it had total revenue of EUR 2.19 billion (equivalent to USD 2.51 billion).

About Tracom

Tracom Services Limited is a Kenyan microfinance software company. It aims to “assist companies and organizations by developing cost-effective customized applications which enable them to streamline their daily operations”. Tracom is comprised of four board members and over eighteen staff members as of 2013.

About Equity Bank Kenya Limited

Equity Bank, founded in 1984, is a microfinance bank based in Nairobi, Kenya, that provides loans, savings and fund transfer services. It also serves in South Sudan and Uganda through its subsidiary Equity Bank Uganda. As reported to the Microfinance Information Exchange (MIX) for 2014, Equity Bank has USD 3.0 billion in total assets, a loan portfolio of USD 2.2 billion outstanding to 752,000 borrowers and deposits of USD 2.2 billion from approximately 8.4 million depositors. In 2013, Equity Bank had a return on assets (ROA) of 5.53 percent and a return on equity (ROE) of 28.12 percent.

[1] Ingenico Group deploys a cashless Revenue Collection solution in Kenya, http://www.africa-newsroom.com/press/ingenico-group-deploys-a-cashless-revenue-collection-solution-in-kenya?lang=en

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Ingenico

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Tracom

MicroCapital Universe Profile: Equity Bank

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