Leading the way in mobile financial inclusion, Union Bank of India (UBI), one of the nationalized bank of India, announced the launch of ‘Union Bank Money powered by Nokia’ across India, starting with the Capital Region.The service is already available in Gurgaon and will soon be available in Delhi, Noida and Faridabad.

The service specifically targets users, who do not have a bank account today, by providing access to financial services through their mobile phones and driving financial inclusion. The service will enable consumers to transfer money to other individuals, withdraw cash from business correspondents cash-out outlets (registered Nokia stores) and ATMs, pay utility bills as well as recharge prepaid SIM cards (top-ups) by using their mobile devices, eliminating the need for intermediaries and delivering true convenience.

M.V. Nair, Chairman & Managing Director, Union Bank of India, said, “We strongly believe Union Bank Money will augment financial inclusion amongst the unbanked and under-banked consumer segments by bringing financial services through the mobile device. Technology is a great enabler for banking services and our partnership with Nokia will help us offer ‘Anytime Anywhere’ financial services to consumers across the country. Once rolled out across the nation, Union Bank Money will be the single largest network in India to provide mobile financial services to consumers in urban as well as penetrate rural areas to tap the unbanked populace.”

 “Nokia is building an open ecosystem for mobile payments in India with multiple partners (banks, merchants, billers, service providers), to drive basic financial services across the country. Our partnership with UBI will help connect the unbanked population in the country by leveraging the wide reach of our combined networks and the deep penetration of mobile services in the country. The service will drive financial inclusion by eliminating dependence on the physical presence of a branch or availability of internet banking services,” said D Shivakumar, Vice President & Managing Director Nokia India.

‘Union Bank Money powered by Nokia’ operates across all handsets in India.