By: Masahudu Ankiilu Kunateh
Email: [email protected]
The management of UT Bank on Wednesday unveiled its new innovation in Banking, dubbed ‘UT Bank on Wheels,’ to its shareholders at the Bank’s 2013 Annual General meeting.
The service, which will be the first of its kind in the banking industry in Ghana, is a mobile branch equipped with communications and technology systems, to offer real time online banking services to the general public with convenience.
The Mobile Bank, dubbed ‘UT Bank on Wheels’, will provide full banking services, including Cash Payments and withdrawals, Current Accounts and Savings Accounts Opening, International Money Transfers, Foreign cash deposits and withdrawals, Ezwich, ATM and other retail banking services.
Mrs. Pearl Esua-Mensah, Deputy Managing Director of UT Bank, said the innovation is in line with the Bank’s vision of Redefining Banking and bringing banking to the door step of the ‘real people’. Statistics indicate that the banking industry caters for only 34-38% of the bankable population, leaving a whopping 66% unbanked.
‘The essence of the implementation of ‘UT Bank on Wheels’ is to effectively and efficiently reach out to this segment of the bankable population by taking banking to their ‘doorstep’, she said.
Mrs. Esua-Mensah further indicated that the Van will provide convenience, reduced turnaround time, accessibility and security for the markets, secondary and tertiary institutions.
‘Customers do not have to leave their shops/ businesses for a long period of time to conduct business in brick and mortar branches, the ‘Bank on Wheels’ enables them to conduct their transactions close to their business’, she added.
Key features of the Mobile Branch include an (NCR) Automated Teller Machine, two teller service points, a customer service area, state of the art telecommunications system, a television for screening the bank’s messages and the ability to offer service from remote locations. The mobile branch is also equipped with a number of safety features to ensure customers go about their business in a safe and secure environment.
The Van will later be deployed to the public following approval from the Bank of Ghana.
Instructively, UT Bank Ghana Ltd, Bank of the Year 2011 is one of the most progressive Banks in Ghana and the flagship company of the UT Group. It commenced business as a Finance house in 1997 and evolved from a lending company, to what is now a Universal Bank that is publicly owned and actively traded on the Ghana Stock Exchange.
UT Bank has positioned itself as a lending bank that seeks to change the face of banking in Ghana through fast, efficient and respectful delivery of products and services. As one of the fastest growing banks in Ghana, UT Bank provides innovative customer oriented products and services, focusing primarily, on the financial needs of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs). The vision of UT Bank Ghana Ltd is ‘ Redefining Banking’.