Full Banking Services on MTN

M

MTNBroadband

Well-Known Member
Joined
Apr 1, 2005
Messages
274
Reaction score
0
Hi all

I see there is another thread asking questions which relate to this already.

MTN Banking was launched officially today

http://www.mtnbanking.co.za/

To start the process, type in *170*10# and you can find out if your SIM is compatible or get further instructions.
 
In the US and UK your money is your own, but just like all other banks in South Africa, you charge people for depositing their own money!
 
Regarding cash deposits: MTN is facilitating increased usage of electronic cash transfers and deposits rather than physical cash. Electronic is cheaper and more convenient and efficient (and less prone to cash heists) :)
 
I have no problem with the deposit charge :) All banks charge, so guess I am used to it! :)

Cheers
Thelma
 
What frustrates me is bank's incorrect of application of encryption technology. For example my bank encrypts by credit card statement with my ID number. A computer will be able to try all possible ID numbers by brute force in less than a day. What they should do is implement PGP mail encryption, which will also allow me to securely send (and receive) messages to (from) them e.g. disputes.

Another issue is this thing of printing out proof of payment on your own printer. The commands sent to the printer can be captured and modified to "prove" anything. The solution is to prove payment by means of a secure web link, e.g. the bank store the proof of payment at https://mybank.co.za/XXXXXXX.html. The payer can then give the link to the receipent, who calls up the "proof" page. He can check the HTTPS certificate to make sure it was in fact issued by mybank.

And this idea that one has to pay extra for historical statements is rediculous ! The cost of computer storage has dropped to the point where you can store the complete banking history of a person since the day he was born for less than a cent. The extra GPRS revenue that this will generate for MTN should be more than enough !
 
Not sure if anyone from MTN can answer the following questions but I'm asking here for the sake of others here who may want to know:

1. From what I understand there are no monthly charges other than transaction charges. Is this correct? Are there any hidden charges not listed here? :

http://www.mtnbanking.co.za/SBIC/Frontdoor_MTN_02_01/0,2547,12865163_12866081_0,00.html

2. Are the flat fee amounts listed in the above link truly flat i.e. the max I will pay for a debit order is R5 regardless of the amount?

3. The site states: "With the MobileMoney account all the messages you send and the calls that you make from your MTN cellphone to do your banking are absolutely free.". This suggests any SMSs or phone calls involved in a transaction are free, what about data transfer (as suggested by nicroets)?

4. Being a purely transactional account I'm guessing there's no interest (it's not mentioned anywhere on the site so just want to confirm).

I'm really interested in opening one of these accounts if the only charges are the ones listed as currently (to be blunt) I'm getting my ass pounded by Nedbank in bank charges, one of these accounts would save me a fair amount.

I can't think of any other questions at the moment but answers to the above would be helpful to everyone :)
 
Feedback

Hi there

I decided to try their helpdesk via e-mail and received a response within 30 minutes. They responded as follows:

"We appreciate you contacting us regarding your concern. It will be a pleasure for us to assist you.

Firstly there are no hidden charges with MTN Banking.We would like to keep an honest and trustworthy relationship with our customer's.The list you see on the website under fees,rates and pricing is exactly what we charge.Should there be any changes our customer's will be the first to know.

Thank you for choosing MTN Banking

Regards
Jabulile Kubheka
Help@MTNBanking"


Regarding question 3: All transaction data is transferred via SMS so there is no GPRS component or fees.

Question 4: You are right, accounts do not attract interest.
 
Thelma said:
I have no problem with the deposit charge :) All banks charge, so guess I am used to it! :)

Cheers
Thelma
Click to expand...

Thanks Thelma. In response to your previous query about SIM upgrade costs - the prices vary per dealer which is why we cannot specify the price on the website. It seems to range from R80 - R137 for both prepaid and postpaid.
 
Thanks for the info Insider, I guess I was pretty lazy not to e-mail the help desk myself :)

stoke said:
/me loses interest in the idea. Screw them. All I want is to not be ripped off already.
Click to expand...

Agreed, I'm no fan of bank charges either but MTN appears to offer the best deal for my use. I hardly ever need to make deposits as most of my clients use electronic transfer and the flat rate on all the other charges allows me to easily calculate my charges (which will be much less than what I'm paying now).

I applaud MTN for at least taking a step in the right direction. Strange how it takes one of our cellular networks to correct the banking industry, perhaps the banks should start setting up cell networks to reduce our cell tarrifs! :rolleyes:
 
I have doubts as to how sustainable this actually is. MTN's core business is communications, not retail banking. And we all know what happens in most instances when businesses veer off from their core business... It takes a special sort of company to get it right, and I dont think any of the carriers in this country have what it takes...
With regards to the banking charges - nice. MTN makes two revenue streams. The data charge from the carrier side, and the banking fee. I think they should drop one of the two...
Just my 2 cents worth. Minus any fees :D
Cheers -
 
ScrnScrm said:
With regards to the banking charges - nice.
Click to expand...

I'm not at the cheapest bank but based on my deal with Nedbank and individual usage patterns, MTN Banking is actually going to cost me more...

I agree that this is a dangerous venture for MTN; online banking through the commercial banks are already so firmly established that I really can't see it succeeding in the long run. An example that comes to mind is Pick'nPay's original banking venture that was a failure; I'm not sure how successful the subsequent GoBanking product is, but I don't know anyone with such an account...
 
BloemGuy I'm not sure how successful the subsequent GoBanking product is said:
Me neither...
I actually dont pay banking charges at all with Nedbank. What most people dont realise, is that banking charges are totally negotiable with your bank manager. If you scream loud enough, they will waiver all non-saswitch fees, provided you dont utilise an overdraft facility...
Click to expand...
 
Yeah they're negotiable if you have a fair amount invested with them, for the rest of us they don't give a rats ass. I've argued with them before and had charges lowered for a month but sure enough the next month they're right back up there. I don't have the time and energy anymore, I'd rather just give them the finger and go with the package that costs me the least.

I think MTN will have more success with this than Pick 'n Pay and besides they're basically just reselling Standard Bank accounts. I'm waiting until the beginning of next month to change over anyway so I'll see if anyone has problems over the next few weeks.
 
Perdition said:
Yeah they're negotiable if you have a fair amount invested with them, for the rest of us they don't give a rats ass. I've argued with them before and had charges lowered for a month but sure enough the next month they're right back up there. I don't have the time and energy anymore, I'd rather just give them the finger and go with the package that costs me the least.
Click to expand...

I cant argue with that :D vote with your wallet!
As to the amount that you need to have invested, its only R10,000, or a bond at less than 50% of the registered value. I think more people qualify for this than we would generally think...
 
In this day of crazy consumerism and debt it's tough to keep above the 10g mark ;) With interest rates as low as they are nobody wants to save. Once I'm back in the "comfortable" bracket I may shop around again.
 
I don't want to sound absolutely mornonic, but exactly what would be the advantage of having such an account other than a slightly more convenient way of doing banking?

OT, sort of: I have the FNB menu on the sim menu but have never used it. Where would I get the access no from? Is there anyone that has used this menu to do their own banking?
 
Well the advantage for me is lower bank charges. They're pretty much cheaper than everyone else unless you have some kind of special deal with the bank.

I'm not too fussed about the mobile banking aspect of it as I do all my banking on the internet at home but it's nice to have.

Basically this isn't a killer deal for everyone. Just like every other product each person needs to weigh up their individual needs :)
 
Perdition said:
In this day of crazy consumerism and debt it's tough to keep above the 10g mark ;) With interest rates as low as they are nobody wants to save. Once I'm back in the "comfortable" bracket I may shop around again.
Click to expand...

I hear you mate. But write the 10k off - ask the bank to make it "unavailable" for you. That way you never spend it, and you never pay bank charges.. but you have the nest egg for dire emergencies (but you should have a charge card (like Amex or Diners) for that anyway :) )
 
Banking fees

ScrnScrm said:
With regards to the banking charges - nice. MTN makes two revenue streams. The data charge from the carrier side, and the banking fee. I think they should drop one of the two...
Just my 2 cents worth. Minus any fees :D
Cheers -
Click to expand...

MTN does not charge any fees for the "data charge". All transactions are facilitated through USSD and WIG (SMS) which are not charged and the call centre calls are free as well. In fact, classical "data" (as in GPRS) is not used.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top
Sign up to the MyBroadband newsletter
X