Telecommunications giant MTN has partnered with banking group Nedbank to enable Mobile Money (MoMo) customers to withdraw cash at all Nedbank ATMs or any participating retail stores, such as Pick n Pay, Shoprite, Checkers, OK Foods and USave, across South Africa at competitive rates.

The move builds on MTN’s efforts to deploy mobile money solutions over the past year to drive greater financial inclusion for all South Africans.

“Achieving cost savings, driving efficiency and bringing the digital world closer to the needs of customers is at the heart of this solution,” said MTN South Africa mobile financial services chief officer Felix Kamenga.

The fees range from R10 for transactions of up to R1 000, R20 for transactions between R2 000 and R3 000 and R30 for transactions between R2 000 and R3 000.

The cash-out functionality adds to the existing MoMo suite of saving, sending and receiving money, paying bills and buying prepaid services, besides others.

MoMo customers can produce a voucher from the MoMo application or USSD by selecting the “cash-out” option, then “cash-out at a Nedbank ATM or any of the participating stores” and entering the amount, between R50 and R3 000, to withdraw.

“After confirming the transaction, the voucher number will be displayed on the App/USSD and in 15 to 20 minutes, customers will receive an SMS with a voucher number and a one-time PIN. Once the SMS is received, they can go to any Nedbank ATM or any of the participating retail stores.

"At a Nedbank ATM would select the Nedbank Cardless withdrawal option and follow the instructions,” he explained.

At a participating retail store, the client needs to inform the staff member at the till point that they would like to make a Nedbank cardless withdrawal. The cash-out vouchers are valid for 30 days.

“Cash-out vouchers are not transferable and if the voucher is not used within 30 days, the funds less the fees are returned to the customer’s MoMo wallet,” he added.

The service is only available between 7 am in the morning until 6 pm in the evening and MoMo customers will not be able to request a cash-out through Nedbank ATMs outside of these times.

For existing Nedbank Avo or Nedbank MobiMoney account holders, the funds will be deposited into their Avo or MobiMoney wallets and they can then cash-out from that wallet.

“We aim to continue bringing exceptional and innovative solutions to assist customers so they can enjoy the benefits of the modern digital world. We remain committed to driving digital and financial inclusion, with the launch of MoMo Cash-out through Nedbank ATM another important step to opening the door to new opportunities for more people,” Kamenga concluded.