JazzCash and Easypaisa have both revolutionized the Pakistani digital banking industry. Although Easypaisa provides more services than JazzCash, the ability to connect to Payoneer gives JazzCash an edge.
Digital banking has taken over the Pakistani banking industry by storm. In the last decade, the industry has grown exponentially to include people residing in even the most remote parts of the country.
While conventional banks have played their part in bringing the digital banking revolution to the public, mobile banking applications such as Easypaisa and JazzCash have been the most successful in garnering attention.
Easypaisa and JazzCash were one of the country’s first digital banking apps and captured the first-mover advantage. These two microbanks account for more than 85% of the total mobile banking transactions in the country, according to the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP).
But how different are these apps from one another?
This guide will help you identify the key differences and similarities between Easypaisa and JazzCash.
Comparing JazzCash and Easypaisa
JazzCash has offered its customers more value than Easypaisa, making it the most used mobile bank in the country. Easypaisa, despite its first-mover advantage, seems to have lost to the rapidly expanding JazzCash. However, things look bright for both banks as there is much more to be done in the digital banking sector of Pakistan.
JazzCash has fewer agents that provide money transaction services to users than Easypaisa, and Easypaisa provides better rates and a much more diverse set of services than its counterpart.
Telenor Microfinance Bank, or the Easypaisa mobile bank, was launched in 2008 and was the country’s first mobile financial service app. It started slow and targeted only the urban areas of Pakistan but soon developed the infrastructure to expand throughout the nation.
Mobilink Microfinance Bank, or JazzCash, was launched in 2012 as a competitor of Easypaisa. It initially targeted the less connected areas of Pakistan where the internet was absent by providing services via mobile banking.
According to the SBP Quarterly Newsletter 2018, Easypaisa has 130,020 agents, of which 28% have account opening capability. JazzCash, on the other hand, has fewer agents than its competitor, standing at 78,582, of which 46% have account opening capability.
Which One is Bigger?
JazzCash holds the most number of transactions in Pakistan’s branchless banking sector and the most valuable transactions. Easypaisa has more presence and an expanding infrastructure base in the country.
JazzCash and Easypaisa have successfully targeted their audience and delivered their required services. While the key features of both applications are almost the same, certain features give one app an advantage over the other.
According to the State Bank of Pakistan Quarterly Review Oct-Dec 2018, below are the key statistics that detail the market share of Easypaisa (Telenor MFB) and JazzCash (Mobilink MFB).
It is evident from this graph that Easypaisa has been able to capture the market in terms of the number of digital bank accounts in Pakistan. Around 52.4% of the users prefer Easypaisa, while only 34.1% have JazzCash as their first choice.
This is where it gets interesting. Even though Easypaisa has the highest number of registered users, JazzCash leads the category of the most active online bank accounts, standing at 44.6% of the users compared to Easypaisa’s 40.7%.
JazzCash also leads in the category of the total deposit amount capturing 55.2% of the overall digital banking deposits in the country, and well above Easypaisa’s 31.3%.
Comparing the Number of Transactions and the Value of Transactions, it is quite evident that JazzCash is the country’s most used digital banking app. One of the biggest reasons for this is its integration with Payoneer, which gives it a competitive advantage over Easypaisa.
Services Provided by Easypaisa
Easypaisa provides users with debit cards, money transfers, ticketing, bill payments, and other essential banking services.
Easypaisa mobile app offers its users a variety of services, including insurance coverage, which is not usually found in mobile payment applications. Some of the most common services provided by Easypaisa are listed below.
1. Debit Card
Easypaisa allows its users to obtain EMV-compliant debit cards for daily use. These cards can be used for purchases and online buying, and you can get more than one card linked to your Easypaisa wallet.
Currently, Easypaisa offers only Paypak and UnionPay debit cards to its users. The UnionPay debit card is an international payment solution via which users can purchase things online from UnionPay-compatible sites.
Paypak is a local initiative to provide a domestic payment solution to users in Pakistan. It is acceptable at all POS terminals and ATMs across the country.
You can get the Paypak debit card for PKR 1,000, while the UnionPay debit card costs PKR 600. Card fees are deducted from your mobile wallet at the time of ordering.
2. Money Transfer
Money transfer is one of the essential features of any digital banking system. Easypaisa allows its users to transfer money in several ways:
- Bank Transfer
- Easypaisa Wallet
- CNIC
Users can choose the option and transfer the amount with a single tap. Transferring money from one Easypaisa account to another is free, but IBFT or Inter Bank Funds Transfer fees may apply for other transfers.
CNIC money transfer service allows users to receive money via their Computerized National Identity Card. This is extremely helpful for users who are not comfortable with technology.
3. Mobile Loads/Bundles
Easypaisa allows its users to top up their mobile balance from the application. Users have to enter their cell phone number, and their balance will be loaded successfully.
A feature of mobile bundles was added to the Easypaisa application a few years ago. This feature allows the users to subscribe to various mobile bundles offered by their respective mobile sim companies with a minor fee.
4. Bill Payments
Most utility bills in Pakistan are still paid in the conventional way where a person has to visit any bank branch or post office with the amount. Easypaisa was one of the first to offer utility bill payment solutions to its users.
Users can now pay various bills, including:
- Electricity
- Gas
- Water
- Telephone
- Credit card
- Solar
- Internet
- Government Fees
- NADRA fee, among others.
The bill payment service offered by Easypaisa is either free of cost or has limited charges. This has allowed users to pay their bills without standing in line for hours on end. Via Easypaisa, they can do so from the comfort of their homes.
5. Online Payments
Shopping is one of the most enjoyable activities for some people; it can be tedious and exhausting for others. If you are the latter type, shopping online is the most comfortable way to get your required things while sitting on your couch, and Easypaisa provides its users with this luxury via online payment solutions.
Daraz is one of the many brands that Easypaisa has partnered with, allowing users to pay via Easypaisa mobile wallet. Another online payment service is the QR Payment system.
Easypaisa application users can now scan the QR code from their apps and make the payment for their shopping.
6. Other Services
Apart from the most common services mentioned above, Easypaisa also equips its users with the following services:
- International Remittance from anywhere in the world via IBAN.
- Discounts from various brands in Pakistan.
- Mini in-app games
- Savings Plans according to minimum balance requirements (Taxes apply)
- Loans
- Donation and Charity
- Challans
- Ticketing
- Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- 1 Rupee Game
- Invite and Earn
Services Provided by JazzCash
Like Easypaisa, JazzCash provides its users with essential banking solutions such as bill payments, money transfers, debit cards, and online payments. One advantage of JazzCash over Easypaisa is its partnership with Payoneer, allowing users to credit their earnings directly to their JazzCash account.
JazzCash is one of Pakistan’s biggest payment apps and has the highest volume of transactions for any other mobile banking app in the country. But why is this app beating the more expanded Easypaisa?
Here are some of the services provided by JazzCash to its users.
1. Debit Card
As with Easypaisa, JazzCash offers its customers debit cards for daily use. Currently, only Paypak debit cards and Mastercard debit cards are issued to customers depending on their preferences, and both cards have their unique selling points.
Paypak debit card does not support online purchases, but users get access to Golootlo discounts at over 12,000 merchants across Pakistan. Mastercard debit card allows online purchases and provides access to over 700 Buy One Get One offers with Vouch365.
The card issuance fee of the Paypak debit card is PKR 899, with an annual fee of PKR 299. The card issuance fee Mastercard debit card is PKR 50 and has no annual fee.
2. Money Transfer
JazzCash allows its users to transfer money in several ways:
- Bank Transfer
- CNIC Transfer
- JazzCash Transfer
- Other Wallet Transfer
- Payoneer Transfer
While the other methods are the same as that of Easypaisa, one advantage of using JazzCash over Easypaisa is the former’s connection with Payoneer.
Since PayPal is inaccessible in Pakistan, its alternative, Payoneer, has become the go-to choice of the vast freelancer community of the country. With the integration of JazzCash with Payoneer, users can safely transfer their earnings via the Payoneer wallet to JazzCash.
This has made the lives of remote workers in Pakistan, making JazzCash one of the country’s most preferred modes of payment.
3. Mobile Loads/Bundles
Like Easypaisa, JazzCash also provides its users the service of topping up their sim balance instantly. It also offers mobile bundles of all the major sim companies in Pakistan. Initially, only Jazz numbers could register to the JazzCash app, and now, all users having cell numbers of any company can open an account.
4. Bill Payments
JazzCash was one of the earliest entrants in the digital bill payment service. It provides utility bill payment services to its users. These services include:
- Electricity
- Gas
- Telephone
- Internet
- Water
- Credit Card Payments
- Health Insurance
- Life Insurance
- Insurance Premium
5. Online Payments
Like Easypaisa, JazzCash is one of the few digital banks providing only payment solutions to their users. Daraz accepts payment via the JazzCash wallet. You have to connect your JazzCash account with your Daraz account to access it. Once they are connected, you can continue making purchases without re-linking them.
JazzCash also allows QR Payment service to its users. You must find a merchant with an integrated QR payment system to make purchases via QR. Then, you have to scan the code, and voila! You have made your payment.
6. Other Services
Some of the other services JazzCash offers its users are listed below:
- Education fee payments (Schools, Colleges, Universities, Coaching Centers, Entry Tests, Education Boards)
- E-vouchers
- Mutual Funds
- Traffic Challans
- Corporate Payments
- Donation and Charity
- Savings Plans
- Tickets
- Careem Vouchers
- M-Tag
- Khelo Aur Jeeto (Play and Win)
The Bottom Line
Digital banking is expected to grow in Pakistan, and mobile banks like Easypaisa and JazzCash are paving the way to a more connected and cashless future. Both applications have done phenomenally in the past few years and have continued to expand their operations.
