MiCash is an exciting and innovative new product from Nationwide Microbank. MiCash is a Bank Account that is operated through a mobile phone attached to the Digicel network. With the assistance of our business partners, Digicel, Oceanic Communications limited and Telepin; MiCash is to be piloted in West New Britain Province of Papua New Guinea in October 2011. 

The ability to execute financial transactions through a mobile device is commonly referred to as Mobile Money. It is estimated that 85% of Papua New Guineans do not have a Bank account, whereas many of these 'unbanked' citizens do have a mobile phone. In the developing world, Mobile Money deployments are occurring at a rapid rate to provide people in poor or rural areas with access to financial services. Nationwide Microbank Limited is the first licensed financial institution in Papua New Guinea to introduce Mobile Money. 

Mobile Money and MiCash provide a lot more than SMS banking. With MiCash a transaction can be anything from transferring funds to a friend or wantok's Mobile phone, to depositing and withdrawing cash from an Agent network. MiCash also enables the account holder to check balances, purchase air time top up, buy goods and services and pay bills.  MiCash is safe, flexible and easy to manage. For rural people, no more traveling many kilometers and paying PMV fares to go to the Bank or ATM. With MiCash you will be able to deposit and withdraw cash at local agents where you see the MiCash sign. For teachers and other government workers; you will be able to receive your salary and not have to go to town to send your money back home. Simply transfer your funds on a mobile phone! 

MiCash is a unique Mobile Wallet. It is different to Post PNG's SMK Mobile, or Digicel's celmoni wallets as it is a Bank Account and a mobile wallet. The advantages of this are that the customer receives all the security and services that they are used to receiving from a financial institution. This includes no ceiling on the wallet balance. The Bank of course will continue to make adequate enquires to meet customer identification and anti��?money laundering protocols, as it would with any other Bank account. Nationwide Microbank has been working very closely with the regulator, the Bank of Papua New Guinea to assist in building a regulatory framework for Mobile Money in PNG. We thank the Central Bank for the encouragement they have provided to Nationwide Microbank. 

MiCash is an initiative of Nationwide Microbank to "bank the unbanked". The implementation of MiCash has received the support of the Pacific Financial Inclusion Program (PFIP) and the Asian Development Bank's (ADB) Pacific Private Sector Development Initiative (PSDI). 

PFIP is a Pacific��?wide program that is helping to provide sustainable financial services to low income households. It is funded by the United Nations Capital Development Fund, AusAID, the European Union, and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and operates from the UNDP Centre in Fiji. PSDI is a regional technical assistance project cofinanced by AusAID. PSDI is designed to support efforts by ADB's Pacific developing member countries to encourage private sectorled, sustainable economic growth. PSDI focuses on the following key reform areas: stateowned enterprise reform and public��?private partnerships, financial sector reform to promote access to financial services, and reform of the legal and business regulatory environments in the region. 

Source: https://www.microbank.com.pg/about_us/media_release/MICASH%20WEBSITE.pdf 

"If you've got a mobile you've got a bank"