MiBank leapfrogs rural customers: Banking with a tap of a Digital ID Card

Exciting news from Papua New Guinea, where MiBank introduces a groundbreaking advancement: customers can now make seamless financial transactions with a tap of their Digizen ID! This a huge leap in banking for the rural villagers, to whom even a simple access to traditional banking services has been a challenge.

In Papua New Guinea, accessing banking facilities in larger towns often entails risks and arduous journeys. MiBank operates outside the conventional model, by providing financial services to rural areas through a network of agents, who are typically small entrepreneurs such as mom-and-pop shop owners.

Accelerating Customer Onboarding with Digizen ID Card

The integration of the Digizen ID card has transformed the customer onboarding process, expediting account openings with speed and security.

Previously customer onboarding relied on identifying customers with paper forms signed by trusted members of the community, which provided only limited assurance with regards to the authenticity of the data. With Digizen the onboarding process has now been fully digitized, as the Digizen ID card carries the same data signed with a digital signature from the village authority that is transferred to MiBank’s core banking with a tap of the ID card. With the new digital process, MiBank agents can effortlessly onboard more customers in a day, supporting their financial inclusion aspirations while enhancing bank agents' earnings.

Reliable Authentication for deposits and withdrawals

The Digizen card can now be used also to authenticate daily banking transactions, providing easier and more secure cash withdrawals and deposits. Digizen ID Cards work even in areas with weak or no connectivity, reducing reliance on central servers and enhancing transaction speeds.

Moreover, the card's ability to identify users in a reliable manner bolsters security, as it mitigates the risks associated with unauthorized access compared to previous methods reliant on phone numbers and PIN codes.

Forgotten PIN Code Retrieval

Forgetting PIN codes happens even to those with high literacy levels, but the situation is even more dire among a large share of the adults being illiterate in the region. Previously PIN code change was possible only at MiBank branch offices that are often too far from the villages, which led to high rate of account dormancy. An account that has not been used for a while is considered dormant, an event that begins incurring extra fees and dwindling balances. The Digizen integration with MiBank now allows a new level of security, making it possible for customers to restore forgotten PINs through their local bank agents based in the village. This eliminates the inconvenience and high cost of traveling to the branch for PIN change, which potentially reduces the amount of accounts becoming dormant.

Leapfrog in authenticating transactions

In summary, the integration between MiBank and Digizen marks a new era for banking in rural Papua New Guinea. With the enhanced security and customer experience helping more people to use money through the safety of their bank accounts, we are taking steps in empowering customers with enhanced financial stability and fostering financial inclusion. MiBank being the early adopter laying the groundwork for a more secure and efficient banking landscape in Papua New Guinea.

None of this would not have been possible without MiBank and their agile software development team who have unwavering commitment to innovation.