According to the World Bank, Ghana is the fastest-growing mobile-money market in Africa with close to 12 million customers at the end of 2019. Currently, the mobile money subsidiary of MTN is the dominant player with about 90% of mobile money transactions, followed by the subsidiaries of AirtelTigo and Vodafone.
Having being in the industry for 10 years, MTN has succeeded in building a good network of agents who facilitate the transfers and transactions of customers with ease nationwide. However, there have been many concerns surrounding the safety of the service recently as a resulted of purported mobile money fraud and other cyber-crimes. These security challenges birthed a new dawn for banks who would dare, to venture into the mobile money space to offer better security and safety.
In January 2020, GCB Bank launched G-Money, a USSD-run mobile money service which allows individuals and businesses to store money and make transactions on their phones and other personal digital assistant devices (PDA). This service is part of GCB Bank’s commitment to drive financial inclusion as part of its strategic objectives.
G-Money facilitates the transfer of funds directly from a bank account to the G-money mobile wallet. The wallet can also be used to make payment for other services such as utility bills and airtime. The introduction of G-Money is part of GCB Bank’s mandate to increase the number of digital services available to its loyal customers. The service is also expected to further propel Ghana’s interoperability system initiated by the Government.
Being the first bank-led mobile money service, G-Money offers the same level of security as a regular GCB Bank account. With G-Money, customers have total control of their transactions since they originate all transactions themselves. The service also gives existing bank customers the opportunity to own a G-Money mobile wallet by self-onboarding onto the service.
Following a comparative analysis of the rates between G-Money and the three other mobile money service providers in Ghana, G-Money currently stands tall with the best Peer to Peer (P2P) and Mobile Money Interoperability (MMI) charges and rates on the market.
GCB Bank has the goal of becoming the leading mobile financial services provider in Ghana and beyond through a commitment to superior service and best practice. The Bank is committed to maintaining its position as the leading bank in Ghana and plans to continue complimenting the telecom players in the mobile money space with its unbeatable rates.
The table below compares G-Money with the other mobile money providers based on five factors.
| G-Money | Other Service Providers | |
| Operation | Bank-led | Telecom-led |
| Maintenance Charges | No charges | No Charges |
| Minimum Balance | None required | None Required |
| Rates for P2P | Up to 999.99 – 50p
1000 and above – GHS1
|
Between 0.5% and 1% |
| Rates for MMI | Flat fee of 10 cedis for sending 1000.01 cedis and above to other networks | Between 12-15 cedis for sending 1000.01 cedis and above to other networks |
| Maximum account balance limit | Up to 30,000 cedis | Same |
G-Money is the only mobile money solution that charges 0.50 pesewas for P2P transactions between a 100 cedis and 1000 cedis and 1 cedi for transactions above a 1000 cedis.
Although G-Money has been in operation for less than five months, it has signed on over 300, 000 customers and expects to cross the 1 million mark by the end of the year. The service also seeks to widen its network of agents and introduce relevant offers to build loyalty among its customers while signing up new ones.
