For the 9 million Haitians living in Haiti, there are less than one bank account for every 21 of them. Many Haitians never had a bank account. Mobile Banking is expected to change Haiti Financial Services.

More than 80 percent of the Haitian population owns a cell phone. Two major mobile phone providers in Haiti have launched mobile banking services. Digicel and Voila will allow members of their respective mobile banking program the capacity to conduct a variety of financial transactions, including cash deposit, withdrawal, payroll services and  person-to-person money transfer.

The initiative came from William and Melinda Gates Foundation and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) that proposed a $10 million reward for the company with the most transactions.

Mobile phone transactions are relatively secure. Payments made electronically from mobile phone to mobile phone are stored in an electronic wallet, in the SIM card. The card can be removed and transferred to other mobile phones. Mobile Banking is more secure than cash handling.

Experts predict that mobile banking will help the Haitian government in its objective to decentralize the country. Mobile banking will allow Haitian to conduct financial transaction between people anywhere inside or outside of Haiti and at any time. In addition, Mobil banking will establish bank history that could be used to apply for loans of other financial services.

Mobile banking is cheaper than a regular bank account. It eliminates overhead cost. The ability to pay someone by phone will save time and money.