MICROCAPITAL BRIEF: I&M Bank Rwanda, Blockbonds to Roll Out Spenn, Mobile Banking App Based on Blockchain

I&M Bank Rwanda, a unit of Kenya’s I&M Holdings Limited, and Blockbonds, a Norwegian mobile banking technology firm, recently announced the debut of Spenn, an app offering person-to-person payments, retail point-of-sale transactions and electronic bank account deposits via mobile phones. The app uses a technology known as blockchain, a tamper-resistant record-keeping system that can be used to record financial transactions on multiple computers so that the data is not dependent on any single machine. Spenn’s point-of-sale function allows the vendor to identify the customer by a QR code shown on her or his mobile phone. To build the app’s user base, I&M has budgeted USD 50,000 to pay commissions to customers who refer friends and family.

Founded in 1963, I&M Bank Rwanda is a commercial bank that provides deposit and lending services for individuals and enterprises via 10 branches in Rwanda. As of December 2017, it reported total assets of RWF 260 billion (USD 303 million), customer deposits of RWF 177 billion (USD 207 million) and an outstanding customer loan balance of RWF 147 billion (USD 171 million). I&M Holdings Limited also operates subsidiaries in Kenya, Mauritius and Tanzania.

Blockbonds was founded in 2015 and released its sole product, Spenn, in 2016. Since then, it has been tested in India, Kenya, Mauritius, Pakistan, the Philippines, Rwanda and Tanzania. Blockbonds’ newer partnerships involve Jamii Bora Bank, a commercial bank in Kenya that offers traditional and microfinance services, and Bankgo Sentral ng Philipinas, the central bank of the Philippines. Blockbonds investors include the Oslo-based Innovation Norway Funding, which placed NOK 500,000 (USD 62,000) in the firm. A group of unidentified private entities invested a total of USD 2.5 million in Blockbonds over three seed funding rounds.

By Nicholas Galimberti, Research Associate

Sources and Additional Resources

I&M Bank Limited press release
https://www.imbank.com/rwanda/first-blockchain-based-platform-unveiled-in-rwanda/

Blockbonds background
https://blockbonds.io/about/

I&M Bank Rwanda background
https://www.imbank.com/rwanda/about-us/mission-vision/

I&M Bank Rwanda annual report
https://www.imbank.com/rwanda/wp-content/uploads/2013/01/Annual-Report-2017_Interactive_300418_DW-min.pdf

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