News 
Nokia Money, which we already took a look at back in September, officially launched in India today.
The service allows folks to have a secure mobile wallet for their money, that can be used to make payments without needing a bank account. Nokia’s hoping the service takes off in Rural India, where only 10 per cent of India’s 600,000+ villages currently have access to a bank, which leads to some amount of insecurity and inconvenience. In urban areas of India, most transactions are still made in cash, inspite of having better bank access, so there is room for a secure electronic alternative.
Interestingly Nokia says there are more Nokia dealers than bankers in India, so enabling those dealers to act as Nokia Money Agents and top up funds on your phone, would mean more people have access to simple, financial services. The customer would pay cash to the agent, who would have the digital cash transferred to their phone in an instant SMS message. The mobile phone can then be used to securely pay utility bills, top up phones, tickets, etc.
Gary Singh, general manager, Nokia Mobile Payment Services said:
“There is a need for alternate financial payment instruments in India and mobile offers the perfect mass platform to deliver these. Transaction costs through banking correspondents is almost a tenth cheaper and for customers using mobile for money transactions the cost are even lower”
The launched Nokia Money service is new and independent of any particular mobile network, and compliments the previous Nokia Money services set up with India’s Union Bank Money and Yes Bank Money. More information over on Nokia Conversations. Nokia Money is available pre-installed on certain budget mobile phones, but you can also download the app.
Clinton is currently based in New Delhi, India and is executive editor for UnleashThePhones. He is responsible for all editorial decisions, and covers all forms of Mobile and mobile-related accessories.
Cj is addicted to caffeine, social media, and technology. Always up for a good conversation, you can reach him through the contact form, his website, on Google Plus 
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Nokia Money is a free service that aims at reducing the problems and risks involved with carrying cash with one self. The customer need not carry any cash but he can carry as much money (up to Rs. 50,000/-) in his mobile phone. For further information on Nokia Money service, please get in touch with your nearest Nokia Retailer. Thank you.
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