FDH Bank rolls out another digital transaction promo dubbed ‘Usampatse-Timpatsa’

* Customers to win Iphone 14 Pro Max; PlayStation 5 or K50,000 cash monthly when they transact four times or more on FDH Mobile

* This is part of FDH Bank’s objective of encouraging customers to transact more using digital platforms

By Duncan Mlanjira

In continuing to inculcate a cashless transaction culture, FDH Bank Plc has with effect Monday, June 26 rolled out another digital transaction platform promotion dubbed #Usampatse Timpatsa!# to run up to October 31.

Launching the promo at FDH Bank’s head office in Blantyre, Senior Digital Banking Manager, Yamikani Mbawala said customers are set to win an Iphone 14 Pro Max (2 each monthly draw); PlayStation 5 (1 each month) and K50,000 cash monthly when they transact four times or more on FDH Mobile.

Mbawala said customers are encouraged to send money to their loved ones or as business transactions to any bank, Mpamba; Airtel Money; FDH 525 mobile; FDH Wallet or FDH Ufulu 525 as well as cardless withdraws through ATM or at an FDH Agent spread across the country.

“This is part of FDH Bank’s objective of encouraging customers to transact more using digital platforms,” he said. “We’ve run such promotions before and we want this to be a culture of using digital platforms because we are a digital bank.”

This was I direct reference to last year’s promotion of Swipe & Dash through which customers who transacted using FDH Bank point of sale (PoS) gadgets for the shopping and purchase of fuel were rewarded after monthly draws.

The lucky winners were then taken back to the supermarkets they purchased their shoppings from and give 60 minutes to dash around the shop with a trolley to pick whatever they needed but not to exceed K300,000.

The Swipe & Dash involved supermarkets such Chipiku Plus, Sana and Build Africa, which Mbawala had admitted that it drew a tremendous jump in the usage of ATM cards, not just in withdrawing cash but paying for goods and services using their PoS placed in strategic service providers, including filling stations.

This time around, Mbawala encouraged customers that the digital transaction is the modern way of doing business, thus the idea behind the #Usampatse Timpatsa!# promotion.

He added that the prizes were mooted so that they be used as presents — especially the Iphone 14 Pro Max and PlayStation 5 — to customers children, spouses and other loved ones — Usampatse Timpatsa (don’t give them such a present yet, we will on your behalf).

“But the winner will still be the customer himself who transacted who will identify a beneficiary or might consider to keep the prize for themselves,” he said.

In 2019, the Reserve Bank of Malawi (RBM) held a digital financial services conference in Mangochi where former Governor Dalitso Kabambe highlighted that the high costs of using cash and cheques include time and money spent accessing a bank branch or an ATM to either deposit or withdraw money — as well as high cost of replacing bank notes.

After the conference that was to impress on financial services stakeholders to accelerate the shift from paper-based payments instruments, RBM took the cashless awareness campaign through the streets of Mangochi.

The awareness campaign started with a march from M’mbaluku led by the members of staff from RBM and various financial service that was spiced by the Malawi Defence Force (MDF) brass band with a car equipped with a public address system in front that had an official announcing the purpose of the march.

The parade ended at St. Augustine 2 Primary School where various banks and non-bank mobile money service providers erected pavilions to market their services. The financial services providers included FDH Bank, Standard Bank, NBS Bank, Nedbank, National Bank, Ecobank, FINCA, First Capital as well as mobile money companies; TNM and Airtel.