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Three private banks in Ethiopia- Awash International Bank S.C., Nib International Bank S.C and United Bank S.C. - on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding which would enable them to launch a wide-reaching ATM machine and point of sales (POS) terminals network through which customers can withdraw cash and make payments for purchases.
The agreement is said to be the first significant cooperation between competing banks in Ethiopia. Three banks have agreed in principle to establish a ATM network called Fettan. The Ethiopian based IT company, Offshoring 2.0 Technology Services PLC, is under consideration to operate and manage the Fettan ATM network.

The Fettan ATM consortium, to be formed, will develop detailed business proposals to be discussed with each bank’s board prior to final decisions on investments and service implementation. According to Berhanu Getaneh, president of United Bank, it took the banks three months to reach this agreement. “It is like a marriage. It is really a long process,” Berhanu told reporters.

If everything goes as planned, Fettan ATM will install over 140 ATM machines and over 340 POSs across Ethiopia. There will be one ATM at every branch of the consortium banks, all domestic airports serviced by commercial service, shopping complexes and merchants. The total investment is estimated at 40 million birr.

Amerga Kassa, president and board member of Nib Bank, comments, “There is no single bank in Ethiopia that can afford to provide extensive geographical coverage and access, or create the know-how to do this properly, as a result this will lead to slow acceptance of card payment system by consumers and it makes total business sense to unite.”

The banks said that other banks and micro-finance institutions are well come to join the consortium.