HOW ONLINE BANKING HAS CHANGED BANKING FOREVER

DO YOU KNOW YOU CAN BUY AND SELL FROM THE COMFORT OF YOUR HOME?

Have you heard of Online banking?

Some people call it internet banking. This specie of banking is also known as an electronic payment method. Online Banking is an electronic payment method that helps bank customers accomplish many financial transactions without leaving their comfort zone and it is done through the accredited website of the bank.

WHAT IS ONLINE BANKING?

Online banking is also known as internet banking, e-banking, virtual banking, net banking, web banking or home banking. It is an electronic payment system that enables customers of a bank to carry out financial transactions through the bank’s accredited website. You never know how convenient online banking is until you try it. The feeling of not having to queue at any bank is relieving.

TYPES OF ONLINE BANKING

The U.S. Department of the Treasury, highlighted three types of online banking; they are as follows:

• Informational Internet Banking.
• Communicative Online Banking.
• Transactional Internet Banking.

INFORMATIONAL INTERNET BANKING

Informational Internet banking is a way the bank passes information to her customers. It can be put simply as a way the bank creates awareness about its products and services to the customers. It could also be described as a method of marketing used by the bank to inform her customers of their products and services. In this banking style, the customers cannot reply the bank.

COMMUNICATIVE ONLINE BANKING

Communicative online banking is a system that gets the customers updated on their account balances, loan and mortgage, account inquiries, and new account updates. This type of online banking system is connected to the bank’s main computer system and the customers can communicate directly with the bank

TRANSACTIONAL INTERNET BANKING

Transactional internet banking is a traditional system where you can visit different branches of the banking institution and make decisions on what happens to your account and decide how to operate it, either you deposit money, make withdrawals, transfer, cash cheques, and make other enquiries

BENEFITS OF ONLINE BANKING

 Online banking is of a great advantage and has brought a lot of relief to banks’ customers like:

• NOTIFICATIONS AND ALERTS

Customers get text messages on their phones or receive e-mails to notify them on every transaction, updates, changes, new investment options, loan policies, and new products. If a different person tries to log into your account, you will also receive notification to that effect.

• CONVINIENCE

You can access your account conveniently when you have a good internet connection anywhere anytime without the stress of queuing up in a bank or an ATM machine. You do not need the assistance of any bank staff to handle your account transactions.

• FAST TRANSACTION

You have accessible code for different banks you can utilize to transfer money, recharge your different networks, get data, buy and sell online, pay school fees, utilities bill, etc. You can also do all these transactions with your bank apps without waiting for your turn on a queue.

• SECURITY

Online banking is secured because online accounts are protected with encryption software that ensures the safety of the customer. You can easily detect if any transaction is done on your behalf, you also have access to the history of your transaction if you have any doubt about your account balance.

DISADVANTAGES OF ONLINE BANKING

Online banking has succeeded in reducing the crowd in banking halls and has made transactions fast and convenient. If you are not computer literate or a good user of an android phone, you will encounter a lot of challenges performing your online transactions. You will face the risk and huddles of:

• INABILITY TO DEAL WITH COMPLICATED TRANSACTIONS

Online banking can be very complicated sometimes if you are not conversant with the process and the knitty-gritty of internet banking. This can become a yawning limitation to access some banking activities online because you might end up losing money or paying money into the wrong accounts and doing irreversible transactions that can cause a lot of financial damage.

• WITHDRAWALS

Withdrawal is a great limitation bedeviling internet banking because you can decide to perform all your transactions online to avoid stress, but there are some business organizations that would not accept transfers; your debit or credit cards for payment, but they will demand cash that will oblige you to queue up in the bank counters or ATM machines because you cannot withdraw cash online.

• QUERIES

There are some queries you cannot settle online as it will require the services of a customer service representative to handle. Bank institutions have attached chatting features to their bank websites where you can ask questions and get immediate answers. But they are limited because some of those medium is set to automatically answer some questions.

DIFFERENT BANKING CODES FOR TRANSFERS   

So many people are faced with the challenges of how and where to find the USSD for bank transfers to ease their transaction. If you have a bank account, whether savings accounts or current accounts, you are permitted to use the bank’s transfer code.

WHAT IS BANK USSD CODE?

Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) is a communication tool in the form of numbers and symbols used by GSM telephones to dialogue with mobile network operators. These codes can be accessible anytime of the day using your mobile phones and you do not require internet data to get response. Different banks have their unique USSD codes to perform several transactions. Below is the USSD codes for different banks in Nigeria. These codes have brought a great relief to mobile phone users because you won’t have to go through the stress of searching for a recharge card when you need it or queue up in the banks to pay for goods and services. From your bedroom, you can pay your child’s tuition fees, house rent, utility bills, buy and sell without any hassle.

Just dial *919*5# on your mobile phone and carefully follow the instructions that will be passed across to you.

 USSD CODE FOR ZENITH BANK 

The Zenith bank USSD code is *966#. This code can be used to Open a new Zenith account, buy airtime for yourself or buy for other people, transfer money, check account balance, and update BVN, etc.

Before you can enjoy the services you must first of all register for *966#. You may be asking how do I register with this code? Below is a guide on how you can register to enjoy the Zenith bank USSD code.

How to register for *966# Zenith EazyBanking

You can simply dial *966*00# with your Alertz number

4 digits of your Debit (ATM) card number will be required.

The next page will show your account name and you will be asked to create a 4-digit PIN

The next will be to confirm the 4-digit PIN

“Retrieving your balance “ will be the next message you will receive

You will get an SMS stating the balance in your account.

Zenith Bank online account opening steps

You can open a Zenith bank account by dialing  *966# from your mobile phone and follow the instructions. You will receive an SMS containing your account number.  Below is a quick guide on how you can handle online bank opening.  Dial *966*0# to start.

• You will be asked for your first and last names for your bank account.
• Create 4-digit PIN.

• Confirm PIN.

USSD code to Transfer money in Zenith Bank Nigeria

*966*Amount*Account Number# is the code for transferring money from Zenith bank account. You can use the code to transfer money to GTB, UBA, Polaris bank, all other banks as well as Zenith bank.

Zenith bank code to check account balance

*966*00# is the Zenith bank code to check your account balance from the mobile number you registered with the bank

Code to buy airtime in Zenith Bank

*966*amount#, is the code to recharge the phone number linked with your bank *966*amount*phone number# is the code to recharge for other numbers, or for friends and relatives.

How to Deactivate Zenith Bank Account.

Your Zenith bank account can be protected by deactivating it to stop all debit transactions from your account in case of scam or fraud.

*966*911# to deactivate your Zenith bank account to stop all debit transaction if you suspect any fraudulent act.

 UBA TRANSFER CODES

United Bank for Africa (UBA) uses *919#, as USSD code. It can be used to open a new UBA account, buy airtime (self and third Party), transfer money, check account balance, and update BVN.

UBA TRANSFER CODE TO CHECK YOUR ACCOUNT BALANCE

To check your account balance in United Bank for Africa (UBA), the first thing you do is to dial *919# and follow the guidelines below:

• Dial *919# on your phone.
• From the given options, choose check account balance.
• Type your UBA transfer PIN.
• Enter “okay”.

You can also dial *919*00# on your mobile phone number that is registered with the bank. Then, you will receive a message that contains your account balance.

How to Use UBA USSD Transfer Code to Buy Airtime

To buy airtime with UBA USSD code just

• Dial *919#.
• Select self-top-up.
• Enter amount.
• Then press “Okay”.

UBA Recharge Code to Another Number

You can also recharge your other numbers or recharge for friends or relatives by just dialing

•  *919# on your phone.
• Choose recharge third party.
• Enter the third-party phone number.
• Choose the third-party network type.
• Enter amount.
• Confirm the transaction.

FIDELITY BANK USSD CODE

Fidelity bank USSD code can be simply registered following the process below. The first step is to dial *770#

That will automatically register your phone number, then you will follow the prompt that follows, that will request your account number. You will also be obliged to create a secret pin. The pin is usually four numbers. Make sure you choose numbers you can easily remember. Then, confirm the transfer code registration by clicking “confirm”.   You will receive an SMS after some minutes of sign-up that will confirm that your registration to Fidelity mobile banking is successful. You can start to carry out the transactions at this point.

UNION BANK USSD CODE

Mobile banking in Union Bank is easily achieved by just dialing *826# from the mobile number registered with this bank. When you dial *826#, a notification of a new charge will pop-up, and you will have to select “826” to proceed. After this, another message will pop-up on your screen and you will receive automatic SMS on the phone number you registered with your bank. *826# is free of charge; you will be registered the first time you dial *826#.

The registration is done the first time you dial the code. You can use *826# for transactions like:

• Pay bills.
• Send money to other bank accounts.
• Purchase airtime for yourself and others.
• You can also check your account number, account balance, and your BVN.

USSD CODE FOR STERLING BANK

*822# is the USSD code of Sterling Bank. This code can be used to access services like:

• Recharge card purchases.
• Payment of bills etc.

This code is used with your mobile number registered with the bank and this process does not require any data or internet connection. When you dial *822#, you follow the prompt to achieve your desired results.

USSD CODE FOR GUARANTY TRUST BANK (GTB)

*737# is the USSD code of Guaranty Trust Bank (GTBank). Before you can take advantage of this USSD code, you must have an active account with this bank. Dial *737# on  the phone number registered with the bank and you will receive a prompt to register a password that will enable you have a pass any time you want to transfer money, recharge your phone number online, check account balance or BVN.

GTBank has codes for different purposes or the banking operation that matches your desire.

• For transferring funds from your GTBank to another GTBank account: Dial #your GTB USSD code*1*amount*the NUBAN account no# (e.g. *737*1*5000*0987653412#).
• To make a transfer from your GTBank account to other banks: Dial #your GTB USSD code*2*amount*the NUBAN account no# (e.g. *737*2*5000*309777198).
• To buy airtime for your line: Dial the GTB USSD code*airtime amount# (e.g. *737*500#).
• To send airtime to another line: Dial the GTB USSD code*amount*recipients phone number# (e.g. *737*500*08169497771#).
• To check your account balance: simply dial *737# and follow the onscreen prompt to your GTB account balance.

You can also use the USSD code to make the payment for your electricity bill, HOW CAN I PAY ELECTRICITY BILL WITH GTBANK USSD CODE?

dial *737*50*amount*station code# e.g. *737*50*7500*95#

Some States’ GT Bank Service Disco Code

• Port Harcourt Prepaid: dial *737*50*Amount*95#
• Port Harcourt Postpaid: dial *737*50*Amount*96#
• Eko Prepaid: dial *737*50*Amount*151#
• Eko Postpaid: dial *737*50*Amount*152#
• Ibadan Prepaid: dial *737*50*Amount*137#
• Kano Prepaid: dial *737*50*Amount*93#
• Kano Postpaid: dial *737*50*Amount*94#

WHAT IS USSD CODE FOR KEYSTONE BANK

*7111*0# is the USSD code to register Keystone online banking. You can purchase airtime for yourself with *7111*Amount# You can also purchase airtime for others *7111*Amount*Phone Number#                                                                                Bank Transfer code is *7111*Amount*Account Number#

And follow the instruction that will follow to complete your desired transaction.

WHAT IS THE BANKING CODE FOR ACCESS BANK?

USSD Codes for Access Bank and their Uses

Access bank also has Mobile Premium service that works on smart phones including iOs, Android, Blackberry devices.
What you can do on your Access Mobile Premium

1. Carry out transactions in higher volumes to the tune of N2million daily
2. Confirm Beneficiary name for Funds Transfers
3. Purchase your Airline ticket
4. Carry out your Cheque Management – Request, Confirmation and other cheque instructions
5. Locate branch and ATMs closest to you
6. Airtime top-up to any mobile network
7. Transfer funds within Access Bank and to other Bank
8. Pay bills – DSTV, PHCN, LCC. e.t.c
9. Funds Transfer to Third Parties in Access Bank
10. Funds Transfer to accounts in other banks
11. International Funds Transfer to any country
12. Access Africa- Instant transfer across Africa
13. Airtime purchase

USSD CODES FOR FIRST CITY MONUMENT BANK

First City Monument Bank uses different codes for different transactions. Here is a comprehensive list of the different codes that will suit your immediate needs:

Dial*329*Amount# to top-up your mobile phone.

Dial *329*Amount*Mobile number# to top-up other mobile phones.

Dial *329*Amount*Account number# to transfer funds.

Dial *329*00# to check balance.

Dial *329*0# to reset PIN or reset/create transaction code.

Dial *329*1*Mobile Number# to buy data on any phone.

Dial *329*2*Amount*Smartcard Number# to pay for DSTv or GOTv subscription.

Dial *329#, select self-service, select block card to block debit card

Dial *329#, select self-service, select block account to block account

Dial *329#, select self-service, select link BVN to link BVN

Dial *329#, select statement, select full statement, then select duration (up to 6 months). Your statement will be sent to your registered email address instantly.

Dial *329#, select statement then select mini statement to view your last five (5) transactions instantly.

Dial *329*3*Amount*Meter No# or *329*3*Amount*Account ID# to make your electricity bill payments.

Block USSD Profile or Block Bank Account- *329*911# (Dial from either Registered or Unregistered number)

Do you know that you need a Transaction Code to transfer up to N500,000.00 daily? If you have not created your transaction code, simply follow these simple steps:

Dial *329*0#

Select Create/Reset code

Select your ATM Card

Enter your ATM Card PIN.

Create a 4-digit Transaction Code.

Enter your USSD PIN.

Your Transaction code will be successfully created.

USSD CODE FOR FIRST BANK

*894# is the USSD code for first Bank.

For you to use the code, first, you must be a First Bank account holder, and you can only use the number you registered with your bank to access the bank codes.

Below is the different banking code for different transactions.

To register for First Bank USSD code, dial *894*0#. Then, select your preferred debit card.

Enter your 4-digit Personal Identification Number (PIN) for the debit card.

Now, you can enjoy First Bank USSD banking.

To transfer money from First Bank to other banks in Nigeria, *894*Amount* Number#. You follow the given instructions to complete your transaction.

You can also check your Account Balance by dialing *894*00#.

You must be aware that you can only dial this code with the mobile number registered with the bank.

USSD CODE FOR WEMA BANK

*945*5# is the USSD code of Wema Bank. To enjoy internet banking with Wema Bank, you will have to register and generate a pin. We have the steps below on how you can register to access the Wema Bank USSD code;

• Dial *945*5# and
• Follow the onscreen instructions.
• Provide the information required such as account number, date of birth, new pin, and confirm new pin.

After the pin has been created, you can begin USSD banking transactions.

USSD CODE FOR ECOBANK.

*326# is the USSD code for Eco Bank. You can dial *326# and make your desired transactions on your mobile phone registered with the bank.

You can transfer money with the code. You can also use USSD code 326 to buy airtime for yourself, for friends and relatives, paying your utility bills, and do so many other mobile transactions.

USSD CODE FOR HERITAGE BANK.

*745# is the USSD code for heritage Bank. You can achieve so much with this code by looking at the commands below: