BWI: Oxigen Services ties up with Luup to enhance Financial Services via Mobile Phone

Press release from Business Wire India
Source: Oxigen Services India Pvt. Ltd.
Thursday, October 28, 2010 12:24 PM IST (06:54 AM GMT)
Editors: General: Consumer interest; Business: Advertising, PR & marketing, Banking & financial services, Business services, Information technology, Retailers, Telecommunications; Technology
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Oxigen Services ties up with Luup to enhance Financial Services via Mobile Phone
Indian communities will dramatically benefit from Mobile Branchless Banking, International Remittances and Airtime Top-up through the Banking Channel

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, Thursday, October 28, 2010 -- (Business Wire India) -- Oxigen Services Pvt. Ltd, today signed a service agreement with Luup, a leading mobile payments company, creating a milestone in the delivery of financial services to Indian communities. The signing ceremony was held during the official visit of a high profile Norwegian delegation to strengthen ties with India, attended by His Excellency, Mr. Trond Giske, Minister of Trade & Industry of Norway.

The tie-up between Oxigen and Luup is the first of its kind in the world, promoting cost-effective and seamless branchless banking, cross-border as well as domestic remittances and airtime top-up through the banking channel - all via a mobile handset. As India is the largest receiver of remittances globally, the new services enabled by Oxigen and Luup will benefit not only the large number of under- or unbanked in India, it will also bring convenience to the millions of migrants working in other countries who support them.

Oxigen will use Luup's mobile money technology platform and services to run all of Oxigen's bank-orientated mobile financial services, which will help it grow revenues. The new services will be scalable, secure and user-friendly - to benefit both end-users (banked, unbanked and under-banked) and bank kiosk agents.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Pramod Saxena, Managing Director and Chairman, Oxigen said "Oxigen's new partnership with Luup is a major step forward in enabling the unbanked and under-banked people in India to receive money from their earning family members overseas. Oxigen is continuing to leverage its retail foot print and payment solution software to bring greater convenience and cost savings to its customers."

In addition, Luup will add all Oxigen services to its own portfolio of Mobile Branchless Banking and Mobile Remittance Solutions. The aim is to enable Indians living in other countries (starting with the UAE, a hub of Indian migrant workers) to remotely top-up the mobile phones of their families in India.

Through the partnership, Oxigen's 75,000 strong retail network will become part of an extended local and international payments gateway. With this combined effort Oxigen can expand its business reach overseas with Luup's international partners, such as retail banks, exchange houses, payroll providers and money transfer organisations.

"The partnership with Oxigen is a key step in expanding Luup's international payments gateway further," explained Morten Hofstad, Regional Director, Luup. "We build multi-lateral distribution corridors for seamless, cost-effective and convenient international and domestic remittances. By signing up key partners from banks, exchange houses and payroll processors we create gateways such as the one from the Gulf region to India, bringing vital new solutions to the Indian community."

This partnership will simplify one of the biggest remittance corridors by offering easy and simple access to mobile money to about 400 million un-banked people across rural India, thus providing a push towards financial inclusion .
India receives more than 50 B $ annually in remittances from Overseas Indians, out of which approx 25B$ is from Gulf countries alone. This New low cost Mobile-based money transfer service will benefit their Indian families who will now be able to receive money into the No Frill Accounts opened at Oxigen SBI Banking Kiosks in their neighborhood.

About Oxigen:

Oxigen is India's First and Largest Single Point Recharge, Bill Payments, Ticketing and Kiosk Banking Service provider in India. It has pioneered the idea and execution of electronic virtual distribution of services like Prepaid Airtime, DTH/TV Recharges, OxiCash Cards, Railway /Air/Bus Tickets, Movie Tickets, Bill/Utility payments, Internet/Broadband Payments, Insurance policy repayments, Calling-card Payments. Oxigen, which has over 75000 customer touch points across India, recently joined hands with India's largest bank- State Bank of India to offer banking services at neighbourhood retails, to help financially excluded Bottom of Pyramid people (the Rural and Urban poor) to open "No Frill bank accounts", with biometric identification and transact cash deposits, withdrawals, Loans and domestic Money Transfer.

OxiVision

Oxigen aims to be an instrument of financial inclusion, for the bottom of the pyramid (B.O.P) people of India

OxiMission

To set-up nationwide seamlessly networked environment of connectivity, for mobile linked people and retail, to facilitate banking, transactions and payments within the convenient reach of people in their neighbourhood.

For additional information do visit the Oxigen website www.myoxigen.com & www.oxicash.in

About Luup:

Luup leads with banking-grade mobile payments solutions that enable organisations to securely and profitably transform the way financial services are delivered. The company offers innovative technology that solves customers' business challenges, giving access to new cost-saving and revenue-generating solutions. Luup has proven best-practice experience and has been developing, deploying and running mobile money managed services since 2002.

Luup's commitment to success extends to the creation of an extensive payments gateway. This enables customers to easily expand their own business reach with Luup's high profile partners. The company devises strategies for financial institutions such as Deutsche Bank's Global Transaction Banking Group and leading UAE bank, the National Bank of Abu Dhabi amongst others. Luup's industry leading technology integrates Temenos T24 and Microsoft components.

For additional information visit the Luup website www.luup.com

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Oxi -Lupp Minister Trade
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CONTACT DETAILS
Ms. Meher Sarid, Oxigen, +91 9811050555/ +91 (124) 3950106, meher.sarid@myoxigen.com
Mr. Morten Hofstad, Luup, +971552222705, morten.hofstad@luup.com

KEYWORDS
CONSUMER, MARKETING, BANKING, BUSINESS SERVICES, IT, RETAIL, TELECOMMUNICATIONS, TECHNOLOGY

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