From Matangi Tonga Magazine Vol. 15, no. 3, September 2000.

Plastic money arrived in Tonga on June 21, with an enthusiastic reception seeing over 1000 cards issued in the first month.

Shoppers in Nuku’alofa can now use eftpos cards to withdraw cash from the bank and to use in a growing number of supermarkets, bars, and restaurants.

Gary Ayer, the General Manager of the ANZ Bank, Tonga, said that two Automatic Teller Machines were located in Nuku’alofa, one offering a 24 hour service outside their Railway Road branch, and the other, a Fastcash machine, inside the bank. These new facilities enabled cardholders to withdraw cash from the bank.

Gary said that the Electronic Banking System was the latest technology, and visitors to Tonga could use their Mastercard and Visa credit cards to get cash from their ATM facilities.

The new electronic banking system includes an Electronic Funds Transfer Point of Sale, known as EFTPOS. This facility means that card-holders do not have to carry a lot of cash. The cashier simply swipes the card through a card reader and funds are transferred directly from the card-holder’s account to the shop’s account.

Gary said that 15 of these EFTPOS facilities had been installed in supermarkets, restaurants, and night clubs in Nuku’alofa, and more were expected to be installed before the end of the year.

Gary said that the ANZ had invested about $500,000 on this electronic banking system for Tonga, and had instantly seen positive results. Gary said that by the end of July 500 new accounts had been opened with ANZ. “These are people who want to have cards. We have already issued 1000 cards and another 1000 will be issued soon. By the end of the year we expect to have 4000 ANZ card holders.”

Gary said that the advantages of having an Electronic Banking System would continue as they upgrade the system. “Within 12 months we will have one or two ATM machines. There will also be internet banking. Foreign exchange transactions over the Internet can be done through us.

“Soon in Tonga, Tongans with ANZ accounts in New Zealand and Australia will be able to get money out off their accounts in those countries without having to have a Visa or Credit card, just through their current account in those countries.

“We have a dedicated line to Melbourne, Australia with a huge band-width, before it was not much use to us but now it can be used, it means that we can put a whole lot of electronic transactions through without any more investment in the infrastructure.”

Gary suggested that once the Shoreline Communication’s new wireless system was in place, and if the local telephone rate became cheap they could easily move some of their accounting work over from Melbourne to Tonga where it could be done and then sent back to Melbourne on the line.

Gary said that ANZ Bank traditionally was a bank that had not focused heavily on the retail market, but with the introduction of electronic banking they were changing. “We now offer electronic pay-rolls for businesses. Previously employees did not want employers to put their salaries straight into the bank because they had to go to the bank to get their money out, but now they have a card and they can get their money whenever they want.

“Once we know that their salaries go in electronically, we can then can turn around and provide them with small loans, something we have not been able to do before. So instead of borrowing small amounts from businesses for funerals and family obligations, as is usual here in Tonga, now they can borrow from the bank,” he said. ▲