Category 2: Best Mobile Services

2 d) Mobile Money for the Unbanked Award

This brand new award aims to recognise innovative mobile banking services in Asia that are pioneering the roll out of low-cost financial services for millions of people, where traditional financial services are not within their reach or readily available.

The award is aligned to the GSMA's Mobile Money for the Unbanked (MMU) initiative, which was created to connect the unconnected and improve the social, economic and environmental well-being of the world's population living on less than US$2 a day by supporting and encouraging the development of sustainable mobile money solutions. (Please note, entries for Mobile Money Services targeted at higher income segments, i.e. International remittances, mobile payments, mobile ticketing etc should enter category 2c Best Mobile Money Service).

The purpose of the GSMA's initiative is to accelerate the availability of mobile money services for financially underserved segments of society, in terms of speed of deployment, the achievement of scale and the creation of a variety of platforms - from individual platforms enabling cash transfers to the enabling of interoperable savings, credit and insurance services, for example.

The first MMU Award category as part of the Mobile Asia Awards 2009, will recognise the mobile money service or application that has had the most significant impact on unbanked customers in developing markets over the last year, and which supports the goals of the GSMA's MMU programme. The judges will shortlist three to five entries in this category, with one winner announced at the Mobile Asia Congress in Hong Kong on Wednesday 18th November 2009.

Note! This year's winners in the Asia Mobile Awards will gain an automatic nomination (short listing) for the GSMA's Global Mobile Awards in 2010. The Global Mobile Awards will be presented at the world's leading mobile communications event, the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain in February 2010.

Eligibility

Entry is open to all players in the mobile money ecosystem target the 'unbanked' in developing markets. The GSMA recognises the early stage of development for many of these services and therefore welcomes entries for products and services that are commercially available today, or for trials and pilots, providing trials involve 1,000 or more users. Solutions that have been developed as a result of partnerships between operators and financial institutions are welcomed as joint entries.

All entries must be submitted by Tuesday 15th September 2009 (5pm Hong Kong time).

Entry is open to:

• Mobile operators
• Financial/Banking institutions
• Solutions providers
• Application developers

Judging Criteria

Entries can be submitted for products or services that are commercially available, in trial, soft launch or pilot phase (providing pilots exceed more than 1,000 users). Entries for the Best Mobile Money for the Unbanked category will be judged on the following main criteria:

• The product or service is available (or has been piloted in) at least one developing country market in Asia*
• Judges will be looking for entries that:
• Demonstrate a proactive and successful approach to targeting the unbanked living on less than US$2 per day
• Have gone some way to removing the barriers to deploying mobile financial services in developing markets
• Demonstrate proactive and successful approach to driving sophistication in mobile money
• Contribute to growth and economic development in developing markets
• Demonstrate scalability and sustainability

* See rules of entry for definition of Asia region for purposes of the awards

Specific Entry Form Questions

• What is the brand name of your 'Mobile Money for the Unbanked' product or service?
• Is this a joint entry? If so, who are the partnering organisations?
• Please describe as simply as possible the nature of the product or service and the user proposition (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• Is your product or service a trial or pilot? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• Is your product or service commercially available in the market today? (1000 characters = 170 words)
• If either a trial or commercial service, please list Asian markets where it is being trialed or is commercially available, along with details of when the trial or commercial service was launched and how many trial users/ active customers you have today? If a trial, please explain how long it will run for? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• How many unbanked customers have you helped to bring into the financial eco-system through your product or service? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• What are the key, unique benefits for low income mobile users? How is it seamless, simple and reliable for users? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• Please describe what is unique or innovative about your product or service in technology or service terms? How does it potentially drive growth or economic development? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• What international mobile technology, payment standards or regulatory codes does it conform (or are planned for it to conform) to? (1000 characters = approx 170 words)
• Please provide any other information that supports the strength of your entry (1000 characters = approx 170 words)

Please note: Use website URLs only for a specific website location that is relevant to the category or question and where it will help judges further understand your entry, but due to the number of entries received, judges will not have time to surf company websites looking for further information on the entered product/service or initiative.