NextBillion - An Initiative of the William Davidson Institute at the University of Michigan

Monday, September 2, 2019

By Sifelani Tsiko

The recent launch of a bureau de change by Zimbabwe’s leading mobile money service provider EcoCash after approval by the country’s central bank is likely to help channel more remittances through formal channels and promote financial inclusion in the country.

With a customer base of about 10 million, this means that EcoCash, a subsidiary of Econet Wireless Zimbabwe group, will instantly dominate the bureau de change market share surpassing the combined transactions of more than 200 other licenced agencies countrywide.

Natalie Jabangwe, chief executive of EcoCash says the launch of the bureau de change will make transfers easier, much less expensive to deal with and promote trading of foreign currency in a safe and convenient way.

Photo courtesy of Simon Berry.