CRDB Bank, Posts Corporation re-launch agency banking deal

Dar es Salaam. CRDB Bank Plc and the Tanzania Posts Corporation (TPC) yesterday re-launched their agency banking deal in an effort to boost their joint involvement with the country’s financial inclusion agenda. The enhanced deal seeks to ensure that more and more Tanzanians are able to get CRDB Bank’s services at TPC offices across the country.

“Through this re-launched partnership deal, our services will be available at a network of over 100 TPC offices across the country. This is part of our strategy of ensuring that we bring our services closer to our clients and thus contributing towards the financial inclusion agenda,” the CRDB Bank’s managing director, Mr Abdulmajid Nsekela, said in Dar es Salaam yesterday. He was speaking during an event to re-launch the partnership deal which was graced by the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) minister, Dr Faustine Ndungulile. The deal means that Tanzanians can open accounts, deposit money, withdraw money, pay for their insurance premiums and utility bills as well as government taxes and levies at any of TPC’s offices.

Since the launch of agency banking services in 2013, CRDB Bank now has over 20,000 agents across the country. “In fact, over 40 percent of all transactions are conducted via agents,” he said. The TPC Acting Postmaster General, Mr Macrice Mbodo, assured Dr Ndungulile that they will do everything within their means to ensure that the partnership yields benefits for both parties and also plays a role in the country’s financial inclusion agenda.

In his remarks, Dr Ndungulile said the deal was in line with the government’s goal of using alternative channels to extend financial services to underserved segments of the population.

“A report by Finscope shows that it is only about 16.7 percent of Tanzania’s population that gets banking services. If we put this partnership to proper use, we will increase the size of the banked population,” he said.