TALLINN - Estonia's largest banks - and Uhispank - are offering their clients the opportunity to make payments to other individuals' accounts via mobile phone.
In order for the transfer to work, it is necessary that both the recipient and the payer conclude an agreement on such payments with their banks.
All mobile phone payments between private individuals in Estonia are to be executed in real time, Mati Kaosaar, chief of development at the electronic channels department at Hansapank, said.
"The solution created by the major Estonian banks and the card center is clearly one of the most convenient of its kind. Taking into account Estonians' liking for cellphones, the service was brought out timely and in a manner suitable to customers," Kaosaar said.
The service is mainly designated for small payments. The maximum daily limit of payments is 3,000 kroons (192 euros), and the monthly limit is 30,000 kroons.
To make a mobile phone payment, the payer must enter the relevant service number, the telephone number and the size of the payment and then make a phone call. The payment is executed after the payer enters a security code in response to an automatic inquiry by the call center.
No fee is charged for the service, bank spokespeople said.
Altogether some 17,000 account holders of Hansapank and Uhispank have so far signed agreements on mobile phone payments. More than 1,700 stores and service outlets across Estonia currently accept these payments.
