“monpay” was born in September 2020. Maybe it must be more correct to say “candy pay” was reborn as “monpay”. The number of its application download has been sharply increasing since its reborn.
By February 2021, approximately. Over 550k downloads has been conducted already. Accordingly, active user numbers also have been increasing a lot following with variety of unique development of new service and function of “monpay”.
I think that one of reasons of this sharp increase of user of “monpay” attribute to its brand image change from “candy pay to monpay”. To be honest, this was our most expected reaction by brand change from “candy pay to monpay”.
As “monpay” origin, initially we started “candy” as a part of customer loyalty program in 2014. We started giving “candy point” to our customer depending on their usage volume of MobiCom mobile service. Our customer could exchange their own cumulated points with variety of goods such as food, coffee, grocery on daily life and so on in our partner merchants. Then, time to time, MobiCom organized attractive campaign & promotion and lottery events as well using this candy point program for point holders.
Digital Currency is authorized currency by Mongol Bank and It is treated as official Mongolian currency = National Currency.
However, this candy point itself started having quite similar value to money, “Mongolian Tugrik” and it was required to distinguish the value and use between commercial point and national currency. Therefore, we started discussion of Digital Currency (e-money) implementation in Mongolia with Mongol Bank to step further. By the way, there was slight confusion in those days among many people of the difference between Digital Currency and Crypto Currency. The main difference are two things.
1. Digital Currency is authorized currency by Mongol Bank and It is treated as official Mongolian currency = National Currency. But Crypto Currency has not been authorized by Mongol Bank as national currency.
2. The unit value of Digital Currency will not change compered with national key currency. e.x. 1 candy = 1 MNT. However, the unit value of Crypt Currency will change and is variable always.
In October 2018, the first e-money license in Mongolia was granted to one of MobiCom Group company, MobiFinance. I believe that it was our large step toward acceleration of Fintech development with Digital Currency in Mongolia. By this licensing of e-money, Candy point program by MobiCom transformed to “candy e-money” operated by MobiFinance.
By the way, there are totally five e-money license holders at present in Mongolia including MobiFinance. Only five of us are allowed to have financial business by e-money on Mobile and Web Application as Non-Banking Financial Institute.
At the same timing of the first e-money license obtaining by MobiFinance, we launched “candy pay application” for smartphone user. This was the first official e-money license- based payment application service on smartphone in Mongolia.
As I mentioned earlier, candy point program was a traditional loyalty program only for MobiCom users exclusively. However, it transformed as Mongolian official payment application service by e-money to openly anyone else in country without any exclusivity to non-MobiCom mobile users.
After such historical events in Financial industry of Mongolia, the number of candy payment application user increased stably. However, unfortunately the growth speed and volume were not meeting with our planned target and fur slower than we expected. Even though candy pay application users increased stably, there was still strong image of “traditional point program only for MobiCom users” in the market, then it was still sort of barrier for us to penetrate and break those people’s image and acceptance of daily use of candy payment as official Mongolian e-money.
Therefore, we made decision to change “candy pay” brand itself, then created the name which sounds more like financial (payment) application service, “monpay”.
By this new branding by “monpay”, I think it enabled majority of Mongolian people to change image of our payment application service, then to feel that “monpay” is financial and payment application service to use on daily life.
Additionally, I can touch on "Ecosystem expansion". The service and function which are related to people’s daily life has been embedded into Mobile payment Apps a lot. Electricity payment, water purchase, loan service etc. Thus, People are more getting familiar to using “monpay” as daily settlement method than before.
Now “monpay” has variety of connectivity in inside of application by “mini-Apps” and “mini-stores”. Mini-Apps is “Apps in Apps” structure. Many sub Apps by our partners are connected and running on “monpay” platform. “mini-store” is for the merchants who don’t have their own physical shops or other touch point to their customers. "monpay” as platform is enabling such small merchants to start and run business.
Also, numerous number of partner merchants where monpay is available are located across city i.e. Café, Restaurant, Bar, Grocery shop, Supermarket, Bookstore, Cinema, Gas Stations and so on. Of course, “monpay” has direct connectivity with large scale merchants’ and service providers’ Apps as well. ex. E-Mongolia Apps, UB Cab, unegui.mn and so on. Moreover, by “monpay” Apps, users can scan banks’ “qPay” QR Codes in stores to pay for the products in thousands spot.
As one of unique function, “monpay” enables young generation to purchase smartphone and PC game Apps without using international credit card. Now they can purchase those items by “monpay” through its international connectivity with major game platform over the world.
Mobicom Corporation LLC, Chairman & CEO Tatsuya Hamada
“monpay” was born in September 2020. Maybe it must be more correct to say “candy pay” was reborn as “monpay”. The number of its application download has been sharply increasing since its reborn.
By February 2021, approximately. Over 550k downloads has been conducted already. Accordingly, active user numbers also have been increasing a lot following with variety of unique development of new service and function of “monpay”.
I think that one of reasons of this sharp increase of user of “monpay” attribute to its brand image change from “candy pay to monpay”. To be honest, this was our most expected reaction by brand change from “candy pay to monpay”.
As “monpay” origin, initially we started “candy” as a part of customer loyalty program in 2014. We started giving “candy point” to our customer depending on their usage volume of MobiCom mobile service. Our customer could exchange their own cumulated points with variety of goods such as food, coffee, grocery on daily life and so on in our partner merchants. Then, time to time, MobiCom organized attractive campaign & promotion and lottery events as well using this candy point program for point holders.
Digital Currency is authorized currency by Mongol Bank and It is treated as official Mongolian currency = National Currency.
However, this candy point itself started having quite similar value to money, “Mongolian Tugrik” and it was required to distinguish the value and use between commercial point and national currency. Therefore, we started discussion of Digital Currency (e-money) implementation in Mongolia with Mongol Bank to step further. By the way, there was slight confusion in those days among many people of the difference between Digital Currency and Crypto Currency. The main difference are two things.
1. Digital Currency is authorized currency by Mongol Bank and It is treated as official Mongolian currency = National Currency. But Crypto Currency has not been authorized by Mongol Bank as national currency.
2. The unit value of Digital Currency will not change compered with national key currency. e.x. 1 candy = 1 MNT. However, the unit value of Crypt Currency will change and is variable always.
In October 2018, the first e-money license in Mongolia was granted to one of MobiCom Group company, MobiFinance. I believe that it was our large step toward acceleration of Fintech development with Digital Currency in Mongolia. By this licensing of e-money, Candy point program by MobiCom transformed to “candy e-money” operated by MobiFinance.
By the way, there are totally five e-money license holders at present in Mongolia including MobiFinance. Only five of us are allowed to have financial business by e-money on Mobile and Web Application as Non-Banking Financial Institute.
At the same timing of the first e-money license obtaining by MobiFinance, we launched “candy pay application” for smartphone user. This was the first official e-money license- based payment application service on smartphone in Mongolia.
As I mentioned earlier, candy point program was a traditional loyalty program only for MobiCom users exclusively. However, it transformed as Mongolian official payment application service by e-money to openly anyone else in country without any exclusivity to non-MobiCom mobile users.
After such historical events in Financial industry of Mongolia, the number of candy payment application user increased stably. However, unfortunately the growth speed and volume were not meeting with our planned target and fur slower than we expected. Even though candy pay application users increased stably, there was still strong image of “traditional point program only for MobiCom users” in the market, then it was still sort of barrier for us to penetrate and break those people’s image and acceptance of daily use of candy payment as official Mongolian e-money.
Therefore, we made decision to change “candy pay” brand itself, then created the name which sounds more like financial (payment) application service, “monpay”.
By this new branding by “monpay”, I think it enabled majority of Mongolian people to change image of our payment application service, then to feel that “monpay” is financial and payment application service to use on daily life.
Additionally, I can touch on "Ecosystem expansion". The service and function which are related to people’s daily life has been embedded into Mobile payment Apps a lot. Electricity payment, water purchase, loan service etc. Thus, People are more getting familiar to using “monpay” as daily settlement method than before.
Now “monpay” has variety of connectivity in inside of application by “mini-Apps” and “mini-stores”. Mini-Apps is “Apps in Apps” structure. Many sub Apps by our partners are connected and running on “monpay” platform. “mini-store” is for the merchants who don’t have their own physical shops or other touch point to their customers. "monpay” as platform is enabling such small merchants to start and run business.
Also, numerous number of partner merchants where monpay is available are located across city i.e. Café, Restaurant, Bar, Grocery shop, Supermarket, Bookstore, Cinema, Gas Stations and so on. Of course, “monpay” has direct connectivity with large scale merchants’ and service providers’ Apps as well. ex. E-Mongolia Apps, UB Cab, unegui.mn and so on. Moreover, by “monpay” Apps, users can scan banks’ “qPay” QR Codes in stores to pay for the products in thousands spot.
As one of unique function, “monpay” enables young generation to purchase smartphone and PC game Apps without using international credit card. Now they can purchase those items by “monpay” through its international connectivity with major game platform over the world.
Mobicom Corporation LLC, Chairman & CEO Tatsuya Hamada