adminresults to the end of August 2012 in Harare last week.
The Econet Wireless boss said people in rural areas rely heavily on getting money from relatives using EcoCash, Econet’s money transfer service.
Mr Mboweni said that Econet was also pumping liquidity to its agents in rural areas to ensure that they can give cash to those people who need it.
Econet, he said, had acquired a controlling stake in TN Bank and was now using the bank solely to support the activities of EcoCash.
The country’s biggest mobile telecommunications firm pumped in US$20 million towards recapitalisation of the bank for a 45 percent stake.
EcoCash would not have been possible without a significant shareholding in a financial institution, Mr Mboweni said.
He said EcoCash was now the most successful money transfer service in Africa after M-PESA in Kenya, which has over 14 million users.
EcoCash has just fewer than two million subscribers in its first year in the market, but Zimbabwe has a third of the Kenyan population.
In South Africa, where Vodacom launched a similar service at the same time as Econet Wireless Zimbabwe, only 500 000 people have registered to use it, according to media reports.
Meanwhile, Mr Mboweni has said EcoCash is now becoming more of a wallet as people find it easier to pay for goods using the service.
Major retailers across the country are busy setting up their systems to ensure people can pay through the platform, he said, saying that businesses that do not accept EcoCash will lose opportunities.
Mr Mboweni added that Econet guarantees any business that takes payment through EcoCash that they can swap it for cash at any TN Bank.
With the Christmas holidays beckoning, businesses are gearing up for heavy trade using EcoCash, he said. Kombis across the country have already begun accepting payment through EcoCash and now even newspapers are planning to accept payment via the same route following discussions with Econet.
Econet said it was not only driven by a desire to pioneer innovative and inspiring services, but also services that transform lives.
The introduction of EcoCash has resulted in the financial inclusion of folks traditionally left out of the formal banking system due to their locations and the nature of their economic standing in society.
Online Reporter