Absa rolls out PowerCARD across Africa with HPS
Absa, one of Africa’s largest diversified financial services groups, has completed the modernisation of its African Operations outside of South Africa acquiring payments infrastructure with the help Casablanca-based payment solution provider HPS.
HPS replaced Absa’s legacy systems last year with PowerCARD for eight countries where the financial group operates: Botswana, Kenya, Mauritius, Zambia, Tanzania, Ghana, Uganda and Seychelles.
“The payments landscape in Africa poses a huge potential,” says Absa chief exec
The PowerCARD enables Absa to accept transactions coming from “any channel”, and which are initiated “by any means-of-payment”, according to HPS’ website.
The companies have announced that Absa’s Regional Operations (ARO) has replaced its legacy merchant acquiring settlement platform with PowerCARD – it was officially completed back in March, but has only just been announced publicly.
The financial group’s chief enablement officer, Vanessa Olver, says the new single platform, which consolidates its switch and settlement capability, has reduced the group’s “cost to serve”, “improve[d] stability” and gives each country role-based access so they can manage their own operational controls.
“The payments landscape in Africa poses a huge potential,” says Vimal Kumar, Absa’s regional operation chief executive for its retail and business bank.
“Through electronic payments, we aim to bring financial services to many more unbanked and underbanked people, reduce transaction costs and increase customer convenience. This is a significant investment committed as part of our journey to transform the payments capability of the firm.”
Currently Absa is in the process of being divested from Barclays, which still owns 15% of the financial group, after it was acquired by the UK bank in 2005.
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