We have crossed the threshold of interoperability as per the directive that made ZimSwitch the national switch. This means that we can all send money from EcoCash to other mobile money wallets as well as bank accounts. There has been a lot of chatter about the charges that are associated with transferring money from EcoCash to other mobile money wallets and the charges are well, eye-watering from what we have been seeing on social media. In light of this, we decided to compare how much it costs to send money from EcoCash to OneMoney and vice versa.
EcoCash to OneMoney
Since we don’t yet know EcoCash’s charges for transactions we decided to give it a try and find out. The starting balance in the EcoCash wallet was 219.93:
Steps to send money from EcoCash to OneMoney:
- Dial *151#
- Enter Pin
- Select Option 1 “Send Money”
- Select Option 5 “Send to Account”
- Type “n” for more options till you see OneMoney which is Option 25
- Enter the account number
- Enter the amount
- The reference for the transfer
- Confirm transaction
We then sent ZWL$50.00 from EcoCash to a OneMoney wallet and the remaining balance was 121.55:
So simple maths shows us that the fee for sending ZWL$50.00 from EcoCash to OneMoney is ZWL$48.38. That’s the final balance of ZWL$121.55 subtracted from the initial balance of ZWL$219.93. That gives a figure of ZWL$98.38, to get the charge we remove the amount that was transferred which is ZWL$50.00 from ZWL$98.38 and we get ZWL$48.38.
What will the charge be when the transfer goes the other way
The balance in the OneMoney Wallet was 96.01:
OneMoney to EcoCash steps:
- Dial *111#
- Select option 5 “Banking Services”
- Select option 5 “ZIPIT”
- Press # for more option until you get to the last page. Ecocash is option 24
- Enter phone number under account number
- Enter amount
- Type in pin to confirm the transaction
We sent the same ZWL$50.00 back to the EcoCash wallet and the remaining balance in the OneMoney Wallet was ZWL$41.01
As per the previous example, we will subtract the final balance from the initial balance and then subtract the sent amount from that result to get the transfer fee. Therefore a OneMoney to EcoCash transaction of ZWL$50.00 carries a charge of ZWL$5.00.
The difference is indeed eye-watering
Going by the ZWL$50.00 we sent back and forth, OneMoney is charging exactly 10%. EcoCash on the other hand is charging well over 90% for the same amount.
That, in my opinion, doesn’t really give anyone any incentive to make that kind of transaction. The transfer fee is almost the same as the amount sent. As it stands it seems better just to transact from an EcoCash wallet and not move the money about because the transfer fees don’t really make it worth the trouble.
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32 comments
EcoCash charges are not only criminal but witchcraft!
The article is a bit deceitful. You cannot use one transaction to determine charges. There could be minimum charges involved or charges for different transaction bands. It is a poorly founded deduction that Ecocash charges 90%. It’s akin to swiping for 1c, then being charged $10, then foolishly deducing that swiping charges are 100,000%.
But my question is how can the OneMoney charge be 5 rtgs yet the minimum charge for Zipit is 9rtgs. So mukuti OneMoney is operating at a loss here. Please educate me on that
Minimum zimswitch charge* is 9rtgs so OneMoney ikuita loss ndozvamukureva here
Charge difference between service providers is a slap to the unbanked customers who are deprived of interoperability.
Keen students of mobile money are worried about why Ecocash integrated Zipit under send money option unlike the banking services where all mobile service providers do in any economy.Caming from period of mobile money abuse and money laundering students are worried about the impact this will have to future tracking of transactions and the charges which in this case seem to be combined send money charges plus Zipit charges
Exactly…those are Zipit charges that we are paying and from my own understanding they are flat charges
Ecocash is not doing any good to the Zimbabweans.
What about buying airtime to any number using ecocash or onemoney did they fix it
Just know kuti Netone is ZUPCO and netone is InterCape…ndapedza nemi so
Hahaha apa washaya..lol netone and netone doesn’t make sense
Thats why sometimes i feel the axe on ecocash came at the right time. They were good and monopoly and unfair competition. This time around they will feel the heat.
the RBZ must do something this ecocash madness. In other they are refusing to comply with the directive.
RBZ must wield the axe once again. In other words EcoCash is refusing to comply.
Ecocash must be banned. Masiiwa is an undercover cartel
Why are you complaining about ecocash. I did a zipit from nmb to one money & was charged 50 plus another bank fee. Looks like 50 is the standard rate no matter who you use. Send money wisely. If u are in Sa and withdraw from another banks atm you get charged a huge amount for doing that.
Can you now image how much money zimswitch is now making? The only reason why ecocash had to join. Does it not make sense people? when there are 8 mill subscribers!
EcoCash has outlived its usefulness. It’s now a big sore and a liability to the national monetary arena. Their charges are outrageous. I just hope they get banned. They’re thieves. They’re ruthless. They’re not business friendly. They’re not customer centric. Natalie has failed. Time Zimbabwe moves on without them.
Most zimbabweans love ECOCASH, am one of them, will likely use it for a long time, most of their stuff works and that’s why we use it.
Kwaaaaa
Ecocash is given stricter terms than NetOne so they are forced to charge more. It’s called sabotage.
where and how was it given stricter term
Too much charges on Ecocash pliz try to hv emphaty the your valid customers
You are all free to choose lines of your choice. If you think ecocash is bad, go for other substitutes
Yes we can all blame Ecocash, But it is clear that Mr. Muhamba has not done enough research for the conclusions he has made and he unfortunately is deliberately misleading people from issues he does not understand. If he is genuine, then he has done a half baked job in a space he does not understand or is deliberately trying to drive away Ecocash customers. I recommend that he researches more before he publishes anything in future, such damaging generalizations such as he has done are not acceptable. If I was with Ecocash I would sue him for negligent publishing. As an example he has not even bothered to check what the direct cost of this product is to players on the ZipIt space. Pricing decisions are not only a product of what your competitor is charging, they are also derived from what it costs the service provider to deliver the service as a minimum.
In this case though, It is One money sleeping on the job, buying tomatoes for $1 and selling them for 50 cents. It explains why all other players are charging just about ZWL$50 minimum for this kind of transaction. By the way, ZWL$50 is like US$0.62 or US$0.50 depending on the reality of the cost to each institution. Lets face it, in real life, what is the incentive for transferring a US$0.60 amount.
The problem here is not Ecocash. It is about the ignorance of the writer and OneMoney both of whom have no appreciation of the costs affecting the ZipIT value chain.
Please find below links to comparative ZipIt tariffs from just 2 other commercial banks who rely on fees for their survival and not government subsidies. These are the practices that result in the need for OneMoney and other parastatals to be subsidized by taxpayers because of management failure to simply cover direct costs of business.
https://www.stanbicbank.co.zw/static_file/zimbabwe/Common%20Content/Forms/Stanbic%20October%202020%20Tariffs%20Notice.pdf
https://www.cbz.co.zw/ddownload_category/business-conditions/
We don’t have the complete picture. What if Netone’s charge is a fixed 10% and Ecocash is fixed $48 – then for a transfer of $5000 the former would cost $500 while the latter $48.
It is also interesting to note that sending money from Telecash to Ecocash is by far the cheapest in terms if charges. To send $200 you are charged $9.
Don’t kid each other people. A private monopoly is better than a state controlled anything. Ecocash works, while the systems of state controlled banks like POSB sometimes don’t work on weekends and after working hours. No apologies, no notices, nothing…
Why just Ecocash and Netone? Put some more examples tinyatsoona kuti zvakamira sei
Titaridzei ma messages ese ka tinyatsoona. Hamuna kutenga airtime mukakanganwa here nhai mukuru ?
How long does it take for the transaction to process
how does someone send usd with this think
How do I find the reference number to use from ecocash to one money