Local businesses get major boost to access EU market with UK bank account

Local businesses have been offered a major boost to access the European Union (EU) markets with a United Kingdom (UK) bank account from Ghana to eliminate the long-existing mode of transaction challenges.

Businesses and individuals over the years have struggled with their ability to send money to Europe and the Americas for payments; and even where possible, the transaction charges become overwhelming and discouraging.

To address this gap in the transactional ecosystem, Tranzfar – a financial technology company from the UK – has introduced the ‘Freedom Bank Account’ product for businesses and individuals in Ghana to open a bank account with any currency in the UK and initiate transactions from Ghana and other African countries.

Co-Founder & CEO-Tranzfar, Ryan Romeo, at the product launch in Ghana explained that the objective is to promote trade and create a new window of opportunity for businesses to get access to a new customer base and market access.

The platform’s key features are to enable sending and receiving instant bank payments; grant discounted fees on international payments; earn up to £20 using a referrals scheme; and set up & manage direct debits, he added.

“This platform offers the opportunity to export services and products, as it eliminates payment barriers to Europe and other parts of the world. Our services are available in about 100 countries globally, and businesses can sign up on a monthly, quarterly or annual payment basis,” he said.

The CEO mentioned that the brand wants to integrate fully into the African continent to ensure transactions from Africa to Europe and America are seamless – with minimal charges so that businesses which are optimistic of penetrating the European and American markets can do so effectively.

Chief Financial Officer, Tranzfar, Olusiji Sanya – touching on how the platform works, mentioned that when a business or an individual signs onto the platform, a dedicated client manager is assigned to help facilitate their operational experience. From as little as US$125, anyone can sign onto a freedom account for a month and access the full benefits.

Tranzfar is fostering partnerships with some local banks, fintechs and other financial service providers in the country, to enable freedom account holders to fund their accounts through varied means to facilitate their payment internationally.

With the increasing number of foreign students from Ghana and other African countries in Europe and America, this platform is designed to also assist students access funds easily from their relatives in Africa when the need be.

Deputy Minister of Trade and Industry, Dr. Stephen Amoah, commended the management of Tranzfar for choosing Ghana as their first stop in Africa. He emphasised that the platform’s success is a plus to government’s digitalisation and financial inclusion agenda.

“The youth of this era, especially the entrepreneurs and startups, are focusing more on digital marketing and penetrating international markets – but like has been said, the payment platforms have always been the challenge; and so this is welcome news for industry,” he said.

He assured that government will provide any assistance required to ensure that Tranzfar remains in business and opens up Ghana to Europe for large sums of business transactions.