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MoneyGram’s Senior Regional Director, UK & Ireland, Marc Matthews, has said advancement in technology has made it possible for its customers in the United Kingdom to send money through MoneyGram to recipients in any location in Africa within minutes.  

Matthews who leads MoneyGrams's strategy for the UK and Ireland region, spoke with Mike Abiola, Editor-in-Chief of African Voice, a black British newspaper. The Senior Regional Director at MoneyGram said the money transfer company works with big banks in Africa such as United Bank for Africa, Skye Bank and First Bank of Nigeria. In Ghana, the company works with Commercial Bank. It has a good relationship with Standard Bank and First National Bank in South Africa. It is with such trusted institutions that MoneyGram is making the 10-minute money transfer to Africa possible.

Unlike many westerners who see Africa as a homogeneous continent, Matthews understands the similarities and dissimilarities among countries on the continent. He also recognised the divergent needs among the countries. He spoke about the challenges the company is experiencing in its operations across the different countries. According to him, MoneyGram’s business is growing much better in some countries than in others and Matthews said the company is studying the situation to understand it better and know how to respond.

The company is focusing on South Africa, Zimbabwe, Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, and Uganda. In Nigeria, Matthews said the company is working to ensure their system is trusted such that its customers can be served reliably. For instance, if the money is going to arrive in 10 minutes, customers can be rest assured that they can pick their money without any delays or complaints.

He said, "It’s a trust and a speed service from MoneyGram, from the UK, a trusted brand like the Post Office, Thomas Cook and then trusted brands in Nigeria here like Skye bank, UBA and others that we work with. Our fees are very competitive, we have a competitive FX rate as well. We work very much on these message of security, trust and reliability in Nigeria."

In Zimbabwe, MoneyGram operates its 10-minute money transfer service, alongside an overnight transfer service. Matthews said not everyone needs to get their money within minutes of it being sent.
MoneyGram has also recently launched the echo cash mobile wallet in Zimbabwe to better serve the Zimbabwean community in the UK. It's a technology-based product whereby you can send money from any location in the UK or online by just adding a telephone number.

The company plans to launch mobile wallet schemes next year in several countries including South Africa and Uganda. Matthews said, MoneyGram also plans to launch a product next year whereby you can send money directly to a bank account in Nigeria.

He told African Voice that recipients can receive money in dollars and pound sterling. But in Nigeria, because of recent regulations by the Central Bank of Nigeria which have put restriction on foreign currencies, this is no longer possible.