The survey report includes numbers on agent network structure, agent viability, quality of provider support, compliance and risk as well as other important strategic considerations. It also provides recommendations for developing sustainable networks of mobile money agents.

Opportunities for Pakistan in digital financial services

Pakistan is among the eleven African and Asian countries who participated in this research project, selected for their contribution to the development of digital financial services globally.

The study shows that Pakistan remains the world leader in sharednetworks, with the highest rates of non-exclusivity and non-dedicationin 2017.

Non-exclusivity, here, refers to an agent who serves more than one mobile money service provider, while non-dedication corresponds to an agent who conducts other business from the shop, in addition to mobile money services.

In Pakistan, large providers have partnered with mobile network operators, increasingly dominating the digital financial services landscape, accounting for over half of the market presence. The market is still largely focused on over the counter (OTC), people-to-people transfers.

As per the survey findings, dedicated agents conduct an average of 28mobile money transactions per day, while non-dedicated agents conduct22 transactions.

Pakistan has also established a large agent network via franchises. Almost 90% of agents act as retailers under them.

The latest figures from the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) indicate that providers have registered over 360,000 agent tills, although a significant number (approximately 30%) are inactive. New tills continue to be issued, albeit at a slower rate.

Loopholes and barriers

Only one-third of agents offer wallet registration currently,and cite low customer awareness as hindrance to registeringcustomers.

Many agents are yet to secure BVS (Biometric Verification System) machines, as providers fail to raise the required investment.

As per the survey, the most common types of frauds reported by customers were impersonation (42%), fake SMS (21%) and unauthorised transaction reversal (15%). However, despite gaps in compliance, Pakistan has one of the lowest rates of agent-reported robbery and fraud among the countries where similar research has been carried out.

Profits and revenue for mobile money agents in Pakistan

Survey findings reveal that agents’ profits from mobile money are low in Pakistan, compared to other countries where this research was conducted.

Nonetheless, the majority (52%) of respondents said that they are at least somewhat satisfied with their profits.

Does Pakistan have room for female mobile money agents?

An interesting point that was noted in the survey was the gender break-down. Only 2 of the respondents out of the 2200 were women.

In rural areas, 20% of agents say they don’t have any women customers.

CEO Karandaaz Pakistan, Mr Ali Sarfraz Hussain, highlighted the significance of this survey and said, “We are confident that this survey will go a long way in creating sustainable agent networks that will catalyse greater financial inclusion in the country. We hope that this research will exponentially lead to a solid foundation for agent networks across the country connecting more households with the formal financial system.”

Karandaaz Pakistan promotes access to finance for small businesses through commercially directed investments and financial inclusion for individuals. The Helix Institute of Digital Finance was launched in 2013 as a collaboration between MicroSave, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the International Finance Corporation (IFC), and the UN Capital Development Fund (UNCDF).

This content is a paid advertisement by Karandaaz Pakistan and is not associated with or reflective of the views of Dawn.com and its editorial staff.