Mobile SMS expert Sybase 365 launches mobile finance service in Asia Pacific

Sybase 365 today announced it has been chosen to power AirCash, a mobile financial service for Malaysia. Mobile operator Celcom chose Sybase to power it’s USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) financial service for over 9 million customers.
USSD?

USSD is a function that all GSM phones can access - you just rarely hear about it. It’s very similar to SMS, except that USSD messages cannot be stored or forwarded. They also send slightly faster - making it closer to an Instant Messaging service. It’s a true “send and forget” form of communication, and USSD financial transactions can only occur during a session - no data is saved.

All right. Back to AirCash:

AirCash will allow both 2G and 3G Celcom customers to create an AirCash account. They can add or withdraw money from this account at any Celcom branch, but all other functions are done via their mobile. Users can transfer money to other AirCash users, send money internationally and top-up their mobile minutes. The service is integrated at an operators level, so users only have to dial *133# to access AirCash.

From the release:

“We’re excited to be the first operator in Asia Pacific to launch a USSD Mobile Financial Service offering. This will not only enhance our customer experience with services including money transfer locally and internationally, and airtime topup, but will also help us further enhance our offerings in mobile payments (utility bills etc), mobile banking and mobile commerce (purchase goods and service),” said Kevin Henry, head of business innovation, Celcom (Malaysia) Berhad. “Sybase 365’s platform enables us to continuously offer avant-garde solutions for customers, further solidifying our leadership in delivering more mobile values to our customers beyond voice. We expect cross border remittance to appeal particularly to Malaysia’s migrant population who seek secure, instant and cost effective ways to send money home.”

“Mobile commerce allows operators to grow overall ARPU, increase customer loyalty and reduce operational cost,” said Matthew Talbot, vice president, mCommerce, Sybase 365. “Consumer demand for their mobile phone to act as a ‘wallet’ is on the rise because it simplifies airtime topup, facilitates banking on the go, and helps create low cost payment eco-systems for subscribers who prefer unconventional methods of banking.”

What we think?

It’s funny just how popular m-banking services are in developing countries - or, should I say, it’s funny that they’ll never be popular in Western Europe and America. Other technologies have moved on to the point where m-banking really isn’t usable by us, despite the fact that it’s a great, simple service.