In a statement, Airtel Kenya announced that it has separated itself from its mobile money product, Airtel Money. Henceforth, Airtel money will be under the ownership of Airtel Money Kenya Limited.
In a statement, the telecom group said:
“Following this business separation, Airtel money Kenya Limited will take over and continue the provision of the Airtel money services in collaboration with the licensed telecommunications network of Airtel Networks Kenya Limited. The continued use of the Money Service shall be deemed as proof of the customer’s acceptance of the transfer of their Airtel Money Account and related Customer data and/or sharing of the customer Data between Airtel Money Kenya Limited and Airtel Networks Kenya Limited.
In the Kenyan Market, Airtel Money comes second only behind Safaricom’s M-PESA, which has amassed over 99% of the market for itself.
As Airtel Kenya has been separated from Airtel Money, it has been rumoured that M-PESA will be separated from Safaricom at one time in the distant future, but it has not yet been actualised.
Read: Airtel Money Malawi marks a milestone of 1000 Branches
In June 2022, due to funds needed to run the company’s operations, Airtel Kenya sold over 25% of its mobile money product, which saw them get $550 million after the transaction; the companies which bought the percentage from Airtel Kenya are:
1) Rise Fund, which invested $200 million;
2) Qatar Holding LLC also invested $200 million;
3) MasterCard invested $100 million;
4) Chimera Investment LLC invested $50 million to make the purchase.
The Impact of Telecommunications on businesses in the African Economy
Communication is a very essential part of our lives and can be done by anyone from toddlers to adults, but in business, there is a whole lot of importance attached to it and sometimes needs to be done by experts as it is considered one of the most important skills needed by any business owner.
Read: Airtel Africa Applies to IFC for $194 Million loan
Every business transaction requires one form of communication or the other. An employee may be talking to a department customer and forward some necessary information to another. Nothing can be done if communication isn’t done promptly and straightforwardly.
Investing in telecommunications technology can be a very significant way to improve company performance and reach. Here are the benefits of telecommunications to businesses in Africa:
It provides new ways to connect with clients and customers
Telecommunications technologies provide a new avenue to communicate with clients or customers. For example, a company may purchase phones and other gadgets for sales representatives or support personnel (Customer service) to encourage direct contact with customers, which will create relationships. Hence, fostering long-term prosperity for both parties.
Increased collaboration between colleagues
Where there is no collaboration or a lack of communication among various departments of an organisation, it will bring about a lack of productivity and creativity.
Collaboration is a vital tool expected to be used by companies to enhance their processes regarding the creative and innovative side of their products. To curb lack of communication, we have a lot of services which departments and teams can use to interact more with each other such as Telegram; Zoom for Video conferences; Google meets for Video conferences; WhatsApp Group for both messaging, voice calls and Video calls; Skype for video conference, Etc.
Using these tools can give a company more ideas and remove the location barrier to holding or anchoring meetings among various teams and departments, hence improving the company.
Better and faster internal communication
Before the invention of phones, we used letters, which were very slow before it got to the recipient. The same is also with offices as people were always crowded in the walkways to pass information to fellow staff, causing disorganisation. This could be more stressful if the office of a fellow worker is located miles across the building or in another city. However, with the invention of communication devices such as phones, individuals can pass across information to a fellow worker even when on the other side of the planet, which brings about faster communication.
It brings about greater flexibility in the workplace
As stated above, when communication is made easier with the help of telecommunication gadgets. It brings about flexibility by giving employees more options on how, where and when they work; this means that workers can now work anywhere without any fear of communication issues. This also makes the planning stage easier by putting everyone on the same page through direct communication without the aid of third parties.
Reduce misunderstandings and inefficiencies
Modern offices have a lot of operations ongoing at the same moment, and if there is a lack of communication, it will be very difficult as a CEO or business owner to keep track of all ongoing operations. Lack of communication can also cause misunderstanding among workers, which can slow operations and lead to the company’s inefficiency.
Getting telecommunication gadgets can be vital for companies as it provides workers with the opportunity to contact each other without any stress hence speeding up ongoing operations or ongoing projects. In summary, solid and standard telecommunications infrastructure provides employees with the resources they need to get immediate and direct information on problems that needs clarification to advance.
It enhances teamwork among employees
If employees of an organisation are not in co-operation, it will be very hard for the company to advance and rival its competitors in the market. To foster a closer relationship among your employees, communication will play a vital part because if they have access to these gadgets, it will improve faster communication amongst them hence fostering teamwork.