Vodafone M-Pesa enables consumers in Uttar Pradesh to pay electricity bills

NEW DELHI:Vodafone India’s M-Pesa has partnered with Uttar Pradesh (W) State Distribution Companies - Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitran (PVVNL), Dakshinanchal Vidyut Vitran (DVVNL) & Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran (MVVNL), offering over 35 Lakh households in Uttar Pradesh a simple, easy-to-use option to pay their electricity bills instantly.

Vodafone M-Pesa offers customers a cashless, secure platform for electricity bill payments with the largest network of agents (or CashIn Points) to enable digitization of money for Cash holding population.

Vodafone has more than 115 lakh subscribers in UP(W) who will now be able to pay their electricity bill through M-Pesa, supported by more than 10,000+ outlets (or CashIn Points) including Vodafone Company owned stores, franchisees, and multi brand outlets. These CashIn Points provide convenience and ease to Customers to convert cash into digital money to participate in digital payment of Bills and e-commerce /m-Commerce. The bill payment touch points are easily available at every nook and corner, including 27 Vodafone brand stores.

Inviting the residents of UP(W) to reap the benefit of instant electricity bill payment on the go through Vodafone M-Pesa, Commenting on this initiative, Dilip Kumar Ganta, Business Head, UP West - Vodafone India said “It has been our constant endeavor to deliver and bring innovative and simplified service offerings relevant to the needs of our customers in UP(W). Vodafone M-Pesa partnership with the three key electricity distributing bodies in the state is one such initiative that bridges the need for a simple, timely and cashless payment solution for consumers through their mobile phones”.

Customers across various segments can access M-Pesa on either a smart phone by downloading the M-Pesa App or by dialing a USSD short-code from any phone including any feature phone. This facility is aimed at driving financial inclusion further along with providing the State Electricity Board subscribers in UP(W) the benefit and comfort of making payments instantly. As an added benefit, new users of M-Pesa can earn 5% cashback on the payment made through the App (cashback of maximum Rs.50 each month for a period of 3 months).

Elaborating further on the service, Suresh Sethi, Business Head, M-Pesa, Vodafone India said “We are delighted to facilitate payments via M-Pesa (mobile wallet), safe, fast and convenient way of bringing bank to the mobile. With this facility, customers now have an access to multiple touch points for electricity bill payments in a simple and hassle free manner. From process automation to instant and secure transaction, we are confident M-Pesa will bring transformational benefits to the people in UP(W) and further drive financial inclusion in the state.”

Serving the needs of the unbanked and under-banked customers, Vodafone M-Pesa is a safe, fast and convenient way of bringing bank to the mobile. Also, with a pan India distribution network of over 120,000 CashIn Points and with more than 5 million customers, Vodafone M-Pesa is the largest banking business correspondent in the country. M-Pesa today plays a vital role in enabling financial inclusion and m-commerce. 'M-Pesa’ effectively leverages the combined strengths of Vodafone’s global expertise in the domain of mobile payments and significant distribution reach in India plus the security of financial transactions provided by ICICI Bank.