Selcom Pesa: Transforming transactional experience with lower fees than any other service provider

Dar es Salaam. Despite a drastic surge in the financial services users in Tanzania still face a huge cost burden levied by the most of financiers.

Predatory service providers who are hungry for the return on investment (ROI) would often charge higher, costing fortunes of tens of thousands of the low-income earners.

Selcom Microfinance Bank Limited is the bank with a different heart; focusing on people rather than accumulating wealth—thus why it launched Selcom Pesa in the first place, a digital ground-breaking money transfer platform to watch.

The Bank did not just launch a transactional platform, but rather introduced a low-income, cost-efficient, secure and seamless fintech product to the market to redefine the changing financial landscape.

The flagship, despite its novelty, sets new benchmarks for convenience and accessibility, reflecting the bank’s shared vision for a prosperous and equitable financial ecosystem.

Still and all, the platform vindicates perfectly the premise that technology is designed to lower down transactional costs instead of being used to maximize the profits.

In an exclusive interview with the Citizen team at his office, Selcom Microfinance Bank Limited Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Mr Julius Ruwaichi expounded on the Selcom Pesa and with a clarification of a few things. Excerpts...

Qn: What is Selcom Pesa? Why was it launched?

CEO: Selcom Pesa is a new financial service platform which warrants a customer an opportunity to do all banking transactions at the possible lowest charges compared to other banks and mobile operators.

When you use Selcom Pesa, you save up more than 60 percent of the transactional charges imposed from other service providers.

Our Bank is regulated by the Bank of Tanzania (BoT), in that regard, it is fairly to say that every user of our platform is legally authorized and protected.

Qn: What do you mean with Selcom Pesa lowered transactional cost?

CEO: At Selcom, we are dedicated to becoming at the heart of every success story of our customer by delivering the most affordable financial solutions.

The Selcom Pesa services have been integrated into the TIPS, a Tanzania Instant Payment System managed by the Central Bank which channels money transfers at zero cost.

It would not make sense making profit by raising charges out of what had already been laid as the most affordable and convenient solution by the bank. If the BoT charged us almost zero cost with the TIPS, why raising ours?

We lowered our cost to avail Tanzanians with an access to sustainable and stable financial services. We promise to always maintain this commitment for the future, making sure that everyone benefit from it and achieve his/her economic goals.

Qn: What are the benefits of Selcom Pesa?

CEO: One of the benefits of using Selcom Pesa is convenience and affordability. Selcom Pesa customer is assured of affordability up to 60 percent of fee charge compared to other service providers.

If you have ever tried our platform; then you will agree with me that it is the most effective and easily accessible platform where first-time users can download and register for not more than three minutes.

Qn: What are the key features of the Selcom Pesa platform?

CEO: Through Selcom Pesa, customers will enjoy money transfers from Selcom Pesa to local and international banks, Selcom Pesa to wallets, utility bills (water, light and subscriptions), merchant payments (via till number for banks and wallets), savings (Kibubu), Government payments (TRA and other services) and personal bills (securities, share, betting, travel, insurance, internet and vouchers).

Qn: How can I register with Selcom Pesa?

CEO: For smartphone users, they will have to just download the App from PlayStore or Apple Store and fill out their phone numbers and NIDA numbers.

Upon downloading, they will register by following few instructions on the platform and set biometric and face detection passwords for end-to-end encryption.

For regular phones users, they can access the platform by dialing USSD (*150*35#). To register, they should run up to our Selcom Pesa agents or branches scattered across the country and later access all financial transactions options.

With that approach, I believe that we will cover the whole country.

Qn: To what extent have you invested in technology?

CEO: We are driven by our ‘Digital First’ approach which is woven into digital transformation, putting technology at the heart of the bank’s strategy.

Adding icing on the cake, our bank is under a technological investment guru with over 20 years of market experience offering financial services and digital payments with Selcom Pesa being the product of such remarkable innovation.

Qn: Does Selcom Pesa offer card services?

CEO: The Selcom Pesa customer will use two cards; plastic card (Mastercard) and virtual card. The plastic card can be used to transact via any POS machine at restaurant, retail fuel stations or supermarkets.

For Selcom Pesa virtual card, helps the customer to make online payment. Both cards are transactional charge—free upon their usage, leaving you only with the payment of your service or product.

Qn: To what extent has the security been considered in Selcom Pesa?

CEO: There is no compromise on transaction, data and system protection; and thus when subscribing to the Selcom Pesa App, we require biometrics authentication (fingerprint and face recognitions) plus NIDA verification of the user.

The bank has already started training its staff on how to do necessary security checks for immediate response.

Our 24 hours operations gives customers opportune moment to contact us by dialing toll free: 0800 714 888 or 0800 784 888 whenever they sense cyber threats.

Qn: How do you plan to extend this service countrywide?

CEO: As I spoke earlier, we want this platform to be widely accessible across the country. With an expansive ‘Selcom Huduma’ agency network of over 25,000 and over 10 branches, we expect to reach out to all Tanzanians particularly the underserved.

As the time goes, we will definitely establish new channels of expanding this cost-effective and user-friendly platform to financially excluded population.

Qn: Could you tell us about your newly launched ‘5 Kwa Jero Campaign’

CEO: Our bank has rolled out a flagship campaign dubbed 5 Kwa Jero Campaign which complements our Selcom Pesa platform.

This is the first time customers are offered five transactions at reduced charges of Sh 500 all day long. Send your first day transaction to bank, wallet, Selcom Pesa or Till Number for Sh 500 and get the next four for free.

We would like to emphasize all Tanzanians to continue using Selcom Pesa services to evade from the highest charges imposed by other service providers.

Selcom Pesa is available across all social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, X, Linkedin na Tik Tok under @selcompesa. For more information, please visit https://www.selcompesa.app/