 Plc digital banking user growth continues to gather pace as customers sought alternatives to cash){kind=link}
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Guaranty Trust Holding Company (GTCO) Plc digital banking user growth continues to gather pace as customers sought alternatives to cash following the cash crunch from the Naira redesign exercise.
For the first six months through June 2023, the value of GTCO’s digital banking transactions increased by 11 percent to N20.22 trillion from N18.22 trillion the previous year.
A breakdown of the figure shows the value of mobile and internet banking was up 14 percent to N17.4 trillion in June 2023 from N15.20 trillion as at June 2022. Value of internet banking rose by 3 percent to N1.39 trillion in the period under review from N1.34 trillion the previous year, while the value of USSD transactions fell by 15% to N1.43 trillion.
Interesting, mobile banking volume spiked by 44 percent to 323.5 million in June 2023 from 224.9 million the previous year.
“The value and volume of Internet Banking transactions spiked from March ‘23 as customers sought alternatives to cash following the cash crunch from the Naira redesign exercise,” said the bank.
Analysts say the implementation of the cashless policy initiated by the central bank with a view to deepening financial inclusion has magnified online banking.
Despite the criticism of the Naira design policy that undermined business activities as due to cash crunch, it led to increased digital transaction volumes which added impetus to banks’ earnings.
Other factors responsible for GTCO’s impressive digital banking performance are copious investment in the latest technology and the proliferation of mobile phones which are in the hands of tech savvy generation.
According to a recent report from DataReporta, there were 122.5 million internet users in Nigeria at the start of 2023, when internet penetration stood at 55.4 percent.
The report added that Nigeria was home to 31.60 million social media users in January 2023, equating to 14.3 percent of the total population.
According to the report, total of 193.9 million cellular mobile connections were active in Nigeria in early 2023, with this figure equivalent to 87.7 percent of the total population.
In another report by Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain, the total volume of the Inter Bank Settlement Scheme Instant Payment Platform transactions rose by 613.1 percent to 5.2 billion in 2022 from 729.2 million in 2018. Its value also increased by 381.5 percent from N80.4 trillion (US$174.6 billion) as at 2018 to N387.1 trillion (US$840.67billion) in 2022.
GTCO said the reduction in USSD value and Internet banking volume indicates customers’ continued preference for mobile channels and sensitivity to the ₦6.98 USSD transaction charge.