(Ecofin Agency) - Mauritius' incumbent telecom operator, Mauritius Telecom, has launched its mobile payment service covering the national territory. The service, called my.t money, was officially inaugurated on 24 August 2019 by Prime Minister Pravind Jugnauth.

The company says it wants to improve financial inclusion in the country. The solution was launched with the technical assistance from PCCW Global, the international arm of HKT, Hong Kong's leading telecommunications provider.

Sherry Singh, President and CEO of Mauritius Telecom, explained that “Mauritius Telecom is not simply launching another service, but the vision is way more than that. We intend to positively disrupt the payments industry. We are looking for a quick, simple and pleasant payment. 200,000 customers have already registered for the launch; we already have 1000 traders and more than 200 loyalty partners.”

He said the my.t money service is in the form of a card and a mobile application. The two are linked to help the customer make payments through the mobile phone.

With my.t money, Mauritius Telecom customers will be able to transfer money instantly to family members, facilitate the sharing of an invoice or bill between friends or family members. Governed by Bank of Mauritius, the payment service is based on the cloud with local hosting for sensitive consumer data.