Coastal village Amulut Port benefits
Ward Nine in Amulut Port on the South Coast of West New Britain Province recently celebrated the areas first Kina EFTPOS terminal with a feast and traditional local dancing. The first transaction was certainly a cause for celebration as residents can now avoid making a long and sometimes risky two-day journey via boat and then road to access banking services in Kimbe. Nurses, teachers, parents and small business owners can now conveniently pay for goods and receive money using their local bank cards in their own province.
Amulut’s population is involved in the agricultural sector, growing and selling copra and cocoa and were previously not able to access their finances to pay for goods and services at the local wholesale store. Kina Bank’s POS terminal is the first and only machine that will service five thousand people in the area making their livelihoods simpler and more convenient. Greg Pawson, CEO of Kina Bank, has said “In line with our aspiration to be Papua New Guinea’s (PNG) leading digital bank it is our mission to improve the quality of life for individuals across the country. Providing much needed digital innovation in regional provinces will help progress PNG’s economic development on the whole”. Susan Hulo, businesswoman and co-owner of Amulut Wholesale liaised with Kina Bank’s digital team in Port Moresby and Kimbe to have the POS terminal set-up and configured in Amulut. Susan was guided step-by-step over the phone by Kina Bank’s merchant officer based in Port Moresby to set-up the terminal via a satellite dish signal, which Susan and her partner have personally sponsored.
Kina Bank’s POS terminal boasts the fastest processing times in the market and the terminals accept all local cards. Further to this they also support 4G, dual SIM cards, wireless, Bluetooth and Ethernet connections. Mr Pawson has said “Kina Bank’s new EFTPOS machine located in Amulut Port will provide more flexibility and financial freedom for locals while also removing financial barriers for small business owners”.
Mr Pawson added “We hope that this is the first of many Kina EFTPOS machines adopted in regional areas as Papua New Guinea’s digital landscape continues to develop”. In recent years the world has become less dependent on physical cash as a form of currency, fast processing speeds and accessibility provided by market leading digital products such as Kina’s EFTPOS machines are strong benefits of cashless payments. There is also a safety benefit associated with not carrying around physical money, overall the gradual adoption of EFTPOS terminals across the country will help to create a faster moving economy.