Tag: innovation

In a big step forward, Hubtel, a leading indigenous Ghanaian company, has established the first indigenous Artificial Intelligence (AI) lab in Ghana, marking a significant leap in the company’s bid to realizing its vision. With a vision to be Africa’s most useful company to help everyone easily partake in the digital economy, Hubtel’s new AI lab aims to harness the power of AI and machine learning to address real-world challenges faced by Ghana and Africa today. 

The Power of AI in Everyday Life 

In Tanzania, a farmer utilizes Google’s AI to diagnose and manage crop diseases. That is the transformative power of AI in agriculture. Hubtel’s AI lab envisions creating innovative solutions that can be applied across various sectors. AI has the potential to revolutionize e-commerce, health, and education in Africa, offering practical and efficient solutions to long-standing challenges. 

Augustine Gyawu Adjei, Head of Engineering at Hubtel who leads Hubtel’s AI efforts, explained that the decision to use AI was carefully planned to align with the company’s vision. “Our decision to leverage artificial intelligence stems from careful planning and consideration of myriads of factors to align with company objectives, local and international regulations, and best practices” 

On a commercial scale, Hubtel’s AI Lab leverages AI systems to help businesses grow profit and stop fraud.  

Fraud Detection:  

One of the transformative applications of AI that has significantly impacted businesses on a commercial scale is fraud detection. Hubtel’s AI lab developed cutting algorithms that identified and prevented faulty meters that were causing revenue leakage for the Electricity Company of Ghana thereby safeguarding financial transactions. Whether it’s unauthorized access to accounts or fraudulent credit card transactions, AI-driven solutions have the potential to enhance security and protect businesses from financial losses. 

Driving Revenue Growth:  

AI’s impact extends beyond security measures, playing a pivotal role in driving revenue growth for businesses. Through data analytics and machine learning algorithms, companies can gain valuable insights into consumer behaviour, preferences, and market trends. This approach not only enhances customer satisfaction but also contributes to increased revenue streams, illustrating how AI is reshaping the landscape of commerce in Africa. 

The CEO of Hubtel, Alex Bram emphasizes the significance of the AI lab in creating solutions for businesses and clients.  “Our AI Lab isn’t just about cool tech, it’s about delivering real value to the users on Hubtel. Imagine safeguarding finances with smarter fraud detection, optimizing utility consumption to help protect the revenues of our key merchants through AI-powered insights, and unlocking new financial opportunities for individuals through accurate creditworthiness assessments. That’s the power we’re harnessing at Hubtel AI Lab”, he says.  

Hubtel’s opening of the first indigenous AI lab in Ghana not only showcases the company’s commitment to innovation as they’ve always demonstrated in the past, but also emphasizes the importance of solutions to address the everyday challenges faced by the businesses and organizations in Ghana.  

At Hubtel, we strive to make life easier for our customers. That’s why we’re excited to introduce, Event Tickets.  

With Event Tickets, customers can now purchase tickets for a wide range of paid events listed by our partner EgoTickets, right from their mobile phones. The process is simple and convenient, allowing you to browse through a wide range of events, purchase tickets, and receive an e-ticket, which can be used to access events. 

We believe that Event Tickets will further our mission to make it easy for everyone to partake in the digital economy. With this feature, we’re providing a user-friendly and convenient platform, where attendees can easily browse through a wide range of events, book and pay with their preferred payment method, and receive their e-tickets immediately. 

For event organizers, this offers a unique opportunity to reach a broader range of potential attendees.  

We believe that ‘Event Tickets’ will change the way Ghanaians book for events and we’re committed to making the experience better for our customers as such, we are excited to announce that in the coming months, we’ll be expanding the Event Tickets feature by partnering with other event ticket vendors, to offer a more extensive selection of events. We’ll also be adding new features, such as the ability to filter events by location, date, and time, and the option to share events with friends and family. 

Download the Hubtel app here hubtel.com/app

At Hubtel, we strive to make life easier for our customers. That’s why we’re excited to introduce, Event Tickets.  

With Event Tickets, customers can now purchase tickets for a wide range of paid events listed by our partner EgoTickets, right from their mobile phones. The process is simple and convenient, allowing you to browse through a wide range of events, purchase tickets, and receive an e-ticket, which can be used to access events. 

We believe that Event Tickets will further our mission to make it easy for everyone to partake in the digital economy. With this feature, we’re providing a user-friendly and convenient platform, where attendees can easily browse through a wide range of events, book and pay with their preferred payment method, and receive their e-tickets immediately. 

For event organizers, Event Tickets offers a unique opportunity to reach a broader range of potential attendees.  

We believe that ‘Event Tickets’ will change the way Ghanaians book for events and we’re committed to making the experience better for our customers as such, we are excited to announce that in the coming months, we’ll be expanding the Event Tickets feature by partnering with other event ticket vendors, to offer a more extensive selection of events. We’ll also be adding new features, such as the ability to filter events by location, date, and time, and the option to share events with friends and family. 

Download the Hubtel app here hubtel.com/app

• Where can I find my money?

Your money can be found in your Hubtel prepaid account; at the top righthand side of your dashboard.

• How can I buy bundles?

Bundles no longer exist with the Direct SMS Gateway Messaging service. The cost of your SMS campaigns will now be paid from your Hubtel prepaid account.

• Why has Hubtel changed from bundles?

The Direct SMS Gateway Messaging service does not support bundles and there’s no expiration of bundles.

• What happens to my existing bundles and credits?

Your existing SMS bundles and credits have been converted to money and credited into your prepaid account at an exchange rate of GHS 0.03.

• Is the new rate of each message GHS 0.02?

No. The rate of SMS depends on the gateway selected. You can change gateways anytime you want.

• Where can I see my messages in real time?

You can view your messages sent from the portal on https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/reports and messages sent through the API on https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/api-sms

• Why am I the one choosing my own gateway?

Choosing your own gateway gives you control over the costs of your SMS campaigns. You also get to pause and play or change gateways as you prefer.

• Why do I have to separate my local messages from my international ones?

The charges for local and international messages are different. Also not all gateways support a file upload of both international and local contacts.

• Will I be charged for the same rate for both my international and local SMS campaigns?

The charges for local and international messages are different, also not all gateways support a file upload of both international and local contacts.

• How do I create or top up my API keys on the new messaging service?

In order for you to create, top up your API keys:
i. Go to “Manage Messaging” under “Messaging“.
ii. Click the “Create New API Keys” button to create and top up your new API keys.
iii. You may also top up existing API keys by clicking on the three green dots on any of your keys, and then select “Add Funds”.

• Has the previous endpoint been deprecated?

No. The same endpoint works.

• Can I still download my campaign reports?

Yes. You can download your reports in the existing excel format from now till 30th June, 2022. Starting July 1^st, 2022, downloadable reports will no longer be an excel sheet of numbers for the various campaign statuses.

SMS campaign reports will also now be a summary of all campaigns in PDF format within a selected period.

• How do I access my previous SMS campaign reports?

You may access your previous SMS reports on https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/messaging-reports from now till 30th June, 2022, after which your reports’ format in excel will no longer exist.

• Why aren’t my API messages going through?

Kindly check your Programmable SMS balance to ensure that you have funds on https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/programmablesms and top up if your balance is zero.

Please report any concern that persists to [email protected]

The Direct SMS Gateway Marketplace That Suits Your Business is Here!

The final phase of migration activities to the newly upgraded Direct Gateway Messaging Service, has been completed successfully.

This means…

• The cost of your SMS campaigns will now be paid from your business prepaid account as the new Direct Gateway Messaging Service doesn’t support SMS bundles and credits.
  
• Your current SMS bundles and credits have been converted to money and credited into your prepaid account at an exchange rate of GHS 0.03.
  
• Additionally, you will need to top up your API keys in order to send your messages from https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/programmablesms
  
• SMS campaign reports will now be a summary of all campaigns in PDF format within a selected period. Downloadable reports will also, no longer be an excel sheet of numbers for the various campaign statuses.
  
• You may access your previous SMS reports on https://bo.hubtel.com/newmessaging/messaging-reports from now till 30th June, 2022, after which your reports’ format in excel will no longer exist.
  

Enjoy better pricing offers for campaigns of all sizes that beats the competition!

Kokomlemle–Accra, March 2022: In the latest version of its product upgrades, Ghana’s leading name in bulk SMS messaging, Hubtel, has released features to enable users collect payment and send money to as many contacts at the same time via SMS.

Head of Product at Hubtel, Patrick Asare-Frimpong, announcing this update, said, “In Ghana, mobile money and bank accounts are the most common ways to send and receive money. This primarily serves person-to-person payments, but for businesses who need to collect payment from many people at the same time, such as schools, churches, estate managers, and alumni groups, taking payments to a mobile money number often creates some problems. It can be very time-consuming and hard to track who has paid from who hasn’t.”

“We have solved this problem by upgrading our bulk SMS messaging to make it simple for anyone who needs to collect payments from many people to simply alert them via SMS to pay. Each SMS has a unique code and a payment link to pay for any amount. This new update will save our users a lot of time chasing many people to make payments. It’s perfect schools, churches, associations, social media groups, estate managers and businesses in general”, he added.

In addition to taking payments from many people via SMS, users can also send money to as many contacts with a unique withdrawal code to withdraw the money instantly to any mobile money wallet or bank account. This feature is most ideal for user such as event planners, who work with various vendors and suppliers when managing an event. When sending money, the event planner can simply assign specific amounts to send to different mobile numbers in a contact list.

In a demonstration of the feature, Patrick Asare-Frimpong, guided some users and said, “using SMS & Money to send, collect and track payments is just as easy as sending a bulk SMS in five simple steps.  

1. Prepare your contact data in Microsoft Excel* 

2. Upload your excel file and compose SMS. Personalize your message with unique data of each person (for example, name, contribution type, amount to pay) 

3. Set payment features: choose to allow or disallow payment in instalment 

4. Send SMS at the lowest rate of 2p (GHS 0.02) per message 

5. Track who has paid and remind those who haven’t  

Hubtel SMS & Money – How to send SMS to alert unlimited contacts and collect/send payments

Hubtel is the world’s first messaging technology platform to offer this kind of service. The company’s primary mission since its inception in 2005 has been to make it easier for businesses to connect with their customer.

According to 2021 data from the Bank of Ghana and the Ghana Interbank Payment & Settlement Systems, Hubtel currently processes nearly 8.3% of all successful mobile money payments in Ghana. With the introduction of this feature, the company will be looking forward to a significant increase in its transaction volumes.

The update is available on both the Hubtel mobile app o iOS and Android, and online via www.hubtel.com/bulk-sms-ghana/

A revolutionary new digital payments service, myGhQR.com is set to transform the payments landscape and position Ghana among the top cashless economies of the world.

The service is developed by Hubtel, a leading enhanced payments service provider, and is set to launch in the coming days as a quick-no-contact and direct bank-to-bank payment service.

The service, which will be managed in collaboration with the Ghana Interbank Payments and Settlement Systems (GhIPPS) will allow users to make and receive payments from any bank app into their bank accounts directly via a GhQR Code. The service is designed to make all bank payments simple and interoperable without any physical contact.

GhQR is Ghana’s National Quick Response (QR) camera scan & pay service available on smartphone applications of all licensed commercial banks and financial technology providers. The GhQR payment gateway was launched in March 2020, by the Vice President Mahamudu Bawumia to add up to Ghana’s existing electronic payment channels as part of the larger cash-lite agenda.

Since its launch, several banks have rolled GhQR payment codes at various retailer and merchant points. The introduction of myGhQR.com will further allow any merchant of any size to easily generate, print, and display their own GhQR on any material to receive payment.

Customers that use bank apps can simply scan a GhQR code to pay an associated business or person.

The information available on the portal of the service indicates that the service allows anyone with a smartphone and a bank app to make payments to all categories of businesses, including even tabletop retailers and even food sellers once both the buyer and seller are registered on the GhQR Code.

In an internal communication to the staff of Hubtel, its Head of Products, Patrick Asare-Frimpong announced the upcoming launch as a major milestone for cashless payments in Ghana. Stating that “… for the first time I can pay anyone with a bank account by simply scanning a QR code from my bank app. This is simply a game-changer.”

The payment via this process is taken directly from the bank account of the buyer and paid directly into the seller’s bank account via their various bank apps on their respective phones.

This contactless payment process allows the buyer or the one making the payment to scan the GhQR Code on the device of the seller or receiver and follow the prompts to make payment.

Currently, the GhQR Code works perfectly with apps like the Hubtel App, as well as with Fidelity Bank, GCB Bank, Cal Bank, Ecobank, and GTBank Apps.

Report an Issue, Order Tracking, Item Reviews & More…

See what’s new in this update

Report an Issue on Prepaid Balance or Transfer Funds

Need help with your Prepaid Balance or Transfer Funds details? Simply tap on the “Help” button, then select your issue from the list provided or choose “Other” to type your issue and tell us what happened, for immediate assistance.

Report an Issue on Messaging

For assistance with any challenge at the Messaging section of your account, just tap “Report an Issue” at the bottom right and let us know what happened, for immediate assistance.

Report an Issue on Payment History

Receive immediate response on Payment History details as required by simply tapping on the “More button” under “History of Payment”, then select “Report an Issue” to share your concern.

Mobile Money Verification on Web Checkout

Customers can now verify their mobile money numbers during payment with just a one-time verification pin, and receive verification prompt to complete their payment process.

Bank Card Verification on Web Checkout

New and existing card users are now required to provide their bank card details if they have already been verified by Visa, to confirm verification and receive a one-time pin to complete the payment process.

Add Card on Hubtel Pay

Customers can also add their cards as a wallet on Hubtel Pay by linking it to their numbers after the payment process.

Item Varieties

Customers can now select different options of the same item as they prefer, for items with different options available.

Item Extras

An item could have other “Add-ons” that sweeten the deal which can now be added to orders when adding items to cart.

Improved Search

Search suggestions now makes it easier to get preferred search details on items.

Item Reviews

Customers can now post reviews or share feedback on orders and delivery with photos.

Order Tracking

Tracking now includes updates at every stage of the delivery process. From order placement, pickup to delivery.

An upcoming update will help keep your messaging contacts refreshed and up to date…

A recent review of all contact groups saved on Hubtel accounts revealed that 84.33% of mobile numbers within groups have not received an SMS in the past 36 months.

SMS messages to contact groups that are up to date drastically improves the efficiency of your message delivery. In view of this, the latest update coming this end of March 2021, has been designed to put you in better control of your SMS messaging contacts on Hubtel.

Save your existing contacts

We strongly advise that you download your contact groups from your Hubtel account to your computer. Once there, please review and update the contacts with the latest details to support efficient delivery the next time you need to send a bulk SMS message.

Please note that contact groups that have not been updated since January 1^st, 2021, will no longer be available after 20^th March, 2021.

45 Days Expiry Tags

The latest update will also affix expiry tags of up to 45 days to your contact groups to help you review, resend or update them with the latest active mobile numbers only.

Please contact your account manager or email [email protected].

February 2021 Product Update

Save Time Making Bulk Payments to Suppliers

See what’s new in this update

Faster Payments, Happier Merchants.

Pay hundreds of suppliers at a go, to any mobile money wallet or bank account. Set up bulk payments for your vendors, workers, contractors, or commission payments.

How?

Simply download and update the sample excel file provided, with details of suppliers you want to pay.

– Upload your updated excel sheet for data validation.
– Select your preferred debit account and confirm funds transfer.
– Approve or reject requests as you deem fit.

“A more detailed overview of your daily sales performance”

More on your sales patterns

Additional information meaningful to your business has been added to your daily sales report, to help you monitor sales trends and patterns.

Sales summary of multiple branches are also sent individually.

A Better Card Reader For Payment Convenience

Provide your customers the payment experience they expect with the new Hubtel POS contactless card reader. 

This presents significant advantages to both your business and customers.

• Faster processing
  Transactions are three times faster than your current card reader, ensuring speed and ease of transactions.
  
  
• Lower and flexible pricing
  Flat processing fees from 50 pesewas to as low as 1 pesewa for transactions below GHS 100.
  Transactions above GHS 100 are charged from 1% to as low as 0.55% of the transaction amount.
  
  
• Process contactless cards
  Customers with contactless cards can simply tap the card reader to pay for their items.