Bank of Africa rolls out Wari money transfer

Bank of Africa has launched a cash transfer service – the Wari money transfer – aimed at meeting the needs of the unbanked Ghanaian population.

The service according to the bank is convenient for people who wish to receive and send cash both locally and outside the country.

Wari is currently available at all 19 branches of Bank of Africa in Ghana and is expected to be rolled at other banks in the country – including First Atlantic Bank, Express Funds Transfer as well as rural banks and savings and loans facilities.

“You don’t need an account with Bank of Africa before you do a Wari transaction. Anybody can. The purpose of the platform is for us to be able to reach the unbanked so we don’t expect everybody to have account with us before they get the opportunity to transfer funds”, said Ahitophel Dwomoh, Head of the Alternative Channels of the bank,

Mr Dwomoh noted that what sets Wari from existing money transfer is its “cheap” tariff structure.

“Some of the transfer services that are on the market now are based on the percentage of what you send, for instance, but this one [Wari] charge is in bands, so it makes it cheaper”, he said.

He said funds transfer between GH₵1 and GH₵5 attract the same charge, those in different bands also attract same charge to reduce the charges on funds transfer.

Although people in Ghana cannot transfer funds to abroad using Wari, they  can receive money from anywhere across the globe.

“It is very secure. Most of the transfer services that we have now, if you do the transfer you need to call the beneficiary and give him or her the code but with this [Wari] once the beneficiary has a phone the code automatically goes on his or her phone”, Mr Dwomoh explained further.

However, the beneficiary has to present his or her valid ID, the amount he or she is expecting and fill a form.

Bank of Ghana started operations in 2011. It acquired majority interest in Amalgamated Bank in February the same year.

The bank currently offers a wide range of products and services that cover sectors of Retail Banking, SME Banking, Corporate Baking and Treasury.