Over 60% of All Equity Transaction Value Performed Digitally, First Time in History

Digital banking has continued to gain traction across the country, and more banks are bettering their apps and websites to meet consumer demand. Equity Group Holdings, one of Kenya’s largest banking companies, says transaction value processed via digital platforms surpassed those processed within its branches.

“Adoption of digital payments was accelerated with the number of transactions processed over the Pay with Equity solutions growing by 31% and the value of the transactions growing by 58% to reach Kshs 2 trillion up from Kshs 1.3 trillion,” Equity Group Holdings Fully Year 2020 investor report notes.

Just 37.4% of the total transaction value was done at branches, while the remaining 62.6% were processed digitally. This is the first time that the value of digital transactions trumped those done at branches, according to its full-year 2020 financial results.

The latest data showcases an increasing shift in consumer banking behaviours as more Kenyans adopt digital payments.

Equity says digitization enabled 98% of all the Group transactions to happen outside the branches, with 85% of the transactions being on self-service mobile and Internet banking and 12% of the transactions happening on Agency and Merchant banking third party variable cost infrastructure.

As digital adoption increases among the bank’s customers, transactions at branches and ATMs are plummeting. Only a measly 3% of the bank’s transactions happened on fixed cost brick and mortar branch and ATM infrastructure. And, conversely, 97% of the loan transactions were conducted over mobile.

Push to a low-cost operating business model by Equity bank has also been attributed to the shift. Equity has continuously invested in building digital tools to enable self-service and to offer an enhanced banking experience on the go.

The internet is transforming how we do various things, and the financial sector has not been immune to it. Being a digital-first bank has become a priority for almost every bank as more people adopt various digital services.

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