First Capital Plus (FCP) Savings and Loans Company has described as ‘phenomenal’ the reception of its ‘Speed Banking’ product by customers and other potential clients in Kumasi. Company officials say the service should impact positively on total deposit mobilization as customers increasingly sign onto the platform and continue to deposit money via their mobile phones. The Speed Banking service is a unique solution that allows customers of FCP to deposit money into their accounts using a scratch card and a mobile phone. Customers need to purchase vouchers worth ¢2 and ¢5 and text to a short-code for the amount to reflect in their account. The account holder has the power to control deposits, irrespective of location or time of day. FCP has been on a road show and market campaign in Kumasi to introduce the service to customers. The product innovation, according to Stephan Antoh, Head of Legal and Corporate Affairs, is to rope in majority of the unbanked population into the practice of savings as well as complement the institution’s mobile banking service. “Most people don’t want to come to the banking halls, join queues, fill forms just to deposit money… now we’re cutting out the human face and we’re allowing people to deposit money by using their mobile phones”, he told Luv Biz Report. Mr. Antoh is confident the Speed Banking solution would help the drive to migrate a lot more informal businesses into the formal sector. First Capital Plus opened its main Kumasi branch eight months ago, in line with the company’s vision to become a leading provider of banking solutions in Africa within the next decade. Mr. Antoh is excited the company’s client base has increased over the period. Story by Kofi Adu Domfeh/Luv Fm/Ghana