Telebirr to transform Ethio Telecom clients’ electronic transactions

When launching in a matter of weeks, Ethio Telecom’s clients will have the ease of making electronic payments from their mobile devices with Telebirr

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Ethiopia’s giant state-owned telecom service provider, Ethio Telecom, is launching a new mobile money service in the country. It is expected to be starting in the matter of weeks, according to local business news reports. 

Telebirr, name coined by joining the name of Ethiopian currency, birr, with the word Tele. 

According to a report by Capital Ethiopia, Telebirr will enable Ethio Telecom clients to deposit,” send, receive, transfer and spend money” electronically from the comfort of clients’ mobile phones.

Ethio Telecom believes that “It is a solution that facilitates the delivery of cashless transactions like payment, money transfer and mobile remittance,” as quoted by Capital Ethiopia. 

Furthermore, Tele Birr allows users “to cash-out, buy prepaid airtime, SMS, voice, data bundles or customer can pay a direct connect account and for other Ethio telecom subscribers, they will be able to make secure online payments.” 

Not much is known about the fee structures of the service at this point in time.

The company unveiled the plan barely days after launching a 4G network for its clients in the South West part of the country which will cover cities  like Hosana,Arba Minch, Wolaita Sodo, Wolkite,  Jinka and Butajira – among others. 

Ethio Telecom is one of the few successful state-owned companies in the country with nearly 50 million subscribers. 

Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s government is working on partial privatization of the company – a move that drew a stern criticism from some notable economists like Kebour Ghenna who recently joined the opposition Ethiopian Citizens for Social Justice Party to run for Addis Ababa Mayor. 

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Topic : Ethiopia Telecom , Telebirr

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