Tanzania: Exim Launches ‘Wajasirimali Account’ for SMEs Businesses

EXIM Bank Tanzania has launched a specialize service for small business owners and entrepreneurs in the public known as the ‘Exim Wajasiriamali Akaunti’ aimed at bringing closer and promoting banking services to the important economic groups.

Speaking at the launch of the product in Dar es Salaam on Wednesday, Exim Bank Chief Financial Officer (CFO), Mr Shani Kinswaga further said the measure is aimed at facilitating business operations among small business owners and entrepreneurs including food vendors, bodabodas, artisans and similar groups by enabling them to easily save, receive payments digitally, while integrating the said groups with various business opportunities including loans.

Elaborating, Mr Kinswaga said among other things, the service supports the government’s call to financial institutions in the country to design various services targeting to help entrepreneurs and small businesses, especially youths and women, get rid of the economic burden.

“The new product is a response to the feedback we have been receiving from our various stakeholders including our customers… Exim Wajasiriamali Akaunti makes it easy for small businesses, even if they are not registered with Business Registration and Licensing Agency (BRELA) and with their business licenses or Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN) numbers they make various payments including online payment, ATM Transactions, payments by cheques, and other ways of transferring money from one bank to another,” he added.

Equally, he noted that the product also goes hand in hand with the bank’s Life Insurance service. For her part, Exim Bank Head of Products and Revenue Assurance, Ms. Mtenya Cheya said the service is special for the bank’s current customers as well as new customers.

“Along with many other benefits, this product aims to bring about changes in business attitudes among small business owners and entrepreneurs in the country. The aim is not only to encourage the groups to make payments through our banking system but also to provide them with good banking records so that they can be trusted and eventually get loans as the bank already has information on their sales and their different commercial needs,” she said.

Citing some of the benefits of the service, Assistant Retail Product Manager from the bank, Callist Butunga said the product has easy payment and transaction options that include online, mobile, or through the bank’s agents.

“This service also guarantees small businesses access to their services easily at any time, making online purchases and any business transaction. This account can be opened in shillings or dollars, can be opened as a joint account, and allows the user to make payments by cheques, “he added.

So we are encouraging our current and new customers to open ‘Wajasiriamali Akaunti’ as it comes with a number of benefits,” he said