A bank on 4 wheels

These past few weeks, you might have seen a strange-looking green and white van driving around the town. That van is actually a mobile bank. A Mobile Branch to be precise and Iwacu approached CRDB bank’s Relationship Manager to learn more about their one-of-a-kind innovation in Burundi.–By Joanna Nganda

The CRDB’s Mobile Branch.©Iwacu

CRDB, a Tanzanian bank in Burundi, is very keen on innovating and presenting new products to its clients. The Mobile Branch is only one of their innovations but also the one that has caught our attention the most. Arnaud Rugema, the Relationship Manager of CRDB Bank, explains: “At CRDB Bank, electronic innovation is one of our mottos. With the Mobile Branch, we are closer than ever to our clientele. We make rotations between the busy points of the city such as the Sioni’s market, “Quartier Asiatique”, and Buyenzi.”Besides the armored vehicle itself, the main innovation resides in the services the mobile bank offers. “With the Mobile Branch, our clients can perform any banking transaction; there’s no difference between the Mobile Branch and the headquarters of the CRDB bank. Besides the ATM (Automated Teller Machine, Ed.) services, you can transfer, deposit or withdraw money, check your account, and even open or close your account,.” Arnaud Rugema says. Bigere, a merchant at ‘Quartier Asiatique’, remembers when he first saw the Mobile Branch: “At first, I thought it was a weird-looking car, and when the driver told me that it was a bank…I was surprised! He also told me that I could open a bank account right there. If I hadn’t already had one, I would have tried to see how it works. Burundi is getting really developed!”

Unthinkable but true

But according to Arnaud Rugema, the population was not always as enthusiastic as Bigere. Indeed, to some, deposing their hard-earned money in a vehicle is unthinkable. “At first, people were reluctant to deposit money because they thought the van would just drive away and steal their money. But their money is safe. In fact, if they go to our headquarters or Simbanking facility, another new CRDB Bank product, they will see that their accounts have been updated. This is possible because of the real-time connectivity to the bank core system. On that subject, we hope that communication in Burundi get better so we can offer even better services to our customers, communication is the only minor issue,” says Arnaud Rugema. The main project of CRDB bank is to maximize their visibility with the Mobile Branch and reach many people, which it has succeeded to do. “We have over 40 daily clients with the Mobile Branch!” says Yves Niyongabo, a Mobile Branch Operator. In fact, the countryside will soon be conquered by the Mobile Branch, especially on busy market days. The bank on 4 wheels will also be of great use to reach unbanked population which constitutes the major part of Burundi population.