Thesis (MDF)--Stellenbosch University, 2011. / Perhaps the African equivalent to the industrial revolution is the mobile revolution we’ve witnessed over the past decade. Specifically the innovation and extraordinary growth of mobile money, mobile technology platforms and ongoing service offerings to millions of otherwise mostly precluded people. The potential for these technologies coupled with latent untapped user demand across sub-Saharan Africa to catalyse investment, crowd in competition and financial service providers and as a result push financial inclusion through access and use, is vast. Link these reasons with the ever sought after global demand for ‘increase in shareholder value’ and it can easily be seen why mobile operators are continuously expanding, partnering with banks and predominantly expanding in emerging and frontier markets in sub-Saharan Africa. This research report explores MTN MobileMoney in Uganda as the case in point; possibly one of the most exciting and rapidly growing platforms in Africa. The research reveals that whilst profitable, it is a very competitive business with tight margins. Continuous education is critical if people from all walks of life are truly to benefit and scale is to be reached to make it even more profitable when servicing the ‘unbanked’ and bottom of the pyramid. Uganda and other countries too, should think strategically about introducing national identity documents, or equivalent, to ensure they maximise the potential ease and reach of technology that can have real and relevant development benefits to people – especially the under-served and poor. Not doing so merely serves as disadvantageous. Broader benefits of mobile money and mobile transactions go far beyond purely the individual user, and include the country’s economy as a whole, providing convenience to corporate as well as small businesses and individuals – the anywhere, anytime factors. Benefits accrue to businesses, and to government, in terms of cost efficiencies and paying large numbers of staff, increased safety and security in a less cash dependent economy. There is significant local and international demand for innovation and new product offerings, driving mobile operators globally and in emerging and frontier markets in particular. There are a number of key factors that make mobile money a commercial success; it’s not just about churn reduction. These factors are explained and explored in this research report. Specifically when data was gathered from MobileMoney users there were no immediate or unexpected surprises. However, what was striking and reassuring was the positive attitude and experience of users, as well as what appears to be latent demand for more services and users’ trust in MTN to provide these.

LL.M. / Despite payment cards being of a fairly recent origin,1 these instruments of payment play an increasingly significant role in commerce. With reference to credit cards, Cornelius already in 2003 stated: “They fulfil various functions that are increasingly important at a time that ecommerce is taking off at a tremendous pace.”2 Similarly criminals continuously use more inventive and technologically advanced methods to commit fraud, including counterfeit card fraud. Is the South African criminal law, however, keeping up? The aim of this study is to investigate whether the various activities which form part of the criminal business value chain relating to counterfeit card fraud, with specific reference to bank payment cards, are sufficiently criminalised in South Africa or whether the inability of our criminal law to address the challenges posed by this crime type necessitates the introduction of further legislation. In the first part of the dissertation the South African common and statutory criminal law is investigated in some depth to establish the applicability thereof on the activities forming part of the criminal business value chain relevant to counterfeit card fraud. The appropriateness of certain statutory provisions is questioned and recommendations are made to amend current legislation. An argument is also advanced for further development of the common-law offence of theft to include identity theft and the unlawful copying and subsequent use of data. Brief reference is made to the international situation. Chapter 2 is an introduction to bank payment card fraud in South Africa focusing on the most prevalent forms thereof being card-not-present fraud and counterfeit card fraud. Reference is made to the manner in which offences related to counterfeit card fraud are currently approached in our criminal courts and the limited impact prosecutions has on the prevalence of this fraud type.

Text in Afrikaans, abstract in Afrikaans and English / The development of sophisticated computer technology and the consequent computerisation of the payment system has had a far-reaching effect on fund transfer systems all over the world. The most important purpose of this thesis is to indicate the nature of an electronic fund transfer; to set out the relationships of the parties involved in an electronic funds transfer and to show by comparison with other legal systems where our law may be deficient in the regulation of the computerised payment system. At the outset, the nature and functions of money are compared to electronic fund transfers and a distinction drawn between paper-based transactions and electronic fund transfers. In this regard, electronic fund transfers as method of payment is also discussed. Automatic computer processing also gave rise to a variety of new kinds of financial services. A distinction is made between customer-initiated systems (A TM' s, EFTPOS and home-banking services) and systems used by the banks to effect electronic funds transfers between banks and to send financial messages. In this regard, the settlement function of clearing houses and the legal nature thereof are examined. A description of a local clearing house, the ACB, is included as well as a discussion of the clearing of cheques, the moment of payment of cheques and the status of the ACB. Other relevant legal aspects of the computerisation of the payment system which are examined and discussed are the following: the use of the so-called electronic signature; the regulation of risks in electronic payments and the creation of sufficient security measures; the criminal liability of an accused in the case of an unauthorised withdrawal or transfer; questions and problems surrounding evidential matters; the putting into operation of procedures to correct errors and the creation of an ombudsman to settle and resolve disputes; cheque truncation and the right of an individual to privacy in the milieu of electronic payments. Finally, the legal relationships between the parties involved in a credit transfer and the moment of payment is examined. Regulation in this regard is also considered. / Die ontwikkeling van gesofistikeerde rekenaartegnologie en die gevolglike rekenarisering van die betalingstelsel het 'n verreikende effek op die fondsoordragstelsels van banke regoor die wereld gehad. Die belangrikste doelstellings van hierdie proefskrif is gevolglik om die aard van 'n elektroniese fondsoordrag aan te dui; om die verhoudinge tussen die partye betrokke by 'n elektroniese fondsoordrag nader te omskryf en om by wyse van 'n regsvergelykende ondersoek aan te toon waar daar leemtes in ons reg ten opsigte van die regulering van die gerekenariseerde betalingstelsel bestaan. Die aard en funksies van geld is ter aanvang met elektroniese fondsoordrag vergelyk en 'n onderskeid is tussen papierbasistransaksies en elektroniese fondsoordragte getref. In hierdie verband is elektroniese fondsoordrag as betalingsmetode ook bespreek. Outomatiese rekenaarverwerking het ook tot 'n verskeidenheid van nuwe soorte finansiele dienste aanleiding gegee. Daar is onderskei tussen klient-geaktiveerde stelsels (OTM'e, EFTPOS en tuisbankdienste) en fondsoordragstelsels wat deur die banke aangewend word om elektroniese fondsoordragte tussen banke te bewerkstellig en om finansiele boodskappe te versend. In die verband is die verrekeningsfunksie van klaringshuise en die regsaard daarvan ondersoek. 'n Beskrywing van die werksaamhede van die ACB, as plaaslike klaringshuis, is hierby ingesluit asook 'n bespreking van die verrekening van tjeks, die tydstip van betaling van tjeks en die status van die ACB. Ander relevante regsaspekte van die rekenarisering van die betalingstelsel wat ondersoek en bespreek is, is die gebruik van die sogenaamde elektroniese handtekening; die risikoreeling in die elektroniese betalingsverkeer en die daarstelling van voldoende sekuriteitsprosedures; die strafregtelike aanspreeklikheid van 'n beskuldigde in die geval van 'n ongemagtigde onttrekking of oordrag; vrae en probleme rondom bewysregtelike aangeleenthede; die inwerkingstelling van foutoplossingsprosedures en die daarstelling van 'n ombudsman om geskille te voorkom en te besleg; tjekretensie en die reg van die individu op sy privaatheid in die milieu van die elektroniese betalingsverkeer. Laastens is die regsverhoudinge tussen die deelnemende partye en die tydstip van betaling in die geval van 'n kredietoordrag ondersoek, en oorweging is aan regulering in die verband geskenk. / Private law / LL. D.

Text in Afrikaans, abstract in Afrikaans and English / The development of sophisticated computer technology and the consequent computerisation of the payment system has had a far-reaching effect on fund transfer systems all over the world. The most important purpose of this thesis is to indicate the nature of an electronic fund transfer; to set out the relationships of the parties involved in an electronic funds transfer and to show by comparison with other legal systems where our law may be deficient in the regulation of the computerised payment system. At the outset, the nature and functions of money are compared to electronic fund transfers and a distinction drawn between paper-based transactions and electronic fund transfers. In this regard, electronic fund transfers as method of payment is also discussed. Automatic computer processing also gave rise to a variety of new kinds of financial services. A distinction is made between customer-initiated systems (A TM' s, EFTPOS and home-banking services) and systems used by the banks to effect electronic funds transfers between banks and to send financial messages. In this regard, the settlement function of clearing houses and the legal nature thereof are examined. A description of a local clearing house, the ACB, is included as well as a discussion of the clearing of cheques, the moment of payment of cheques and the status of the ACB. Other relevant legal aspects of the computerisation of the payment system which are examined and discussed are the following: the use of the so-called electronic signature; the regulation of risks in electronic payments and the creation of sufficient security measures; the criminal liability of an accused in the case of an unauthorised withdrawal or transfer; questions and problems surrounding evidential matters; the putting into operation of procedures to correct errors and the creation of an ombudsman to settle and resolve disputes; cheque truncation and the right of an individual to privacy in the milieu of electronic payments. Finally, the legal relationships between the parties involved in a credit transfer and the moment of payment is examined. Regulation in this regard is also considered. / Die ontwikkeling van gesofistikeerde rekenaartegnologie en die gevolglike rekenarisering van die betalingstelsel het 'n verreikende effek op die fondsoordragstelsels van banke regoor die wereld gehad. Die belangrikste doelstellings van hierdie proefskrif is gevolglik om die aard van 'n elektroniese fondsoordrag aan te dui; om die verhoudinge tussen die partye betrokke by 'n elektroniese fondsoordrag nader te omskryf en om by wyse van 'n regsvergelykende ondersoek aan te toon waar daar leemtes in ons reg ten opsigte van die regulering van die gerekenariseerde betalingstelsel bestaan. Die aard en funksies van geld is ter aanvang met elektroniese fondsoordrag vergelyk en 'n onderskeid is tussen papierbasistransaksies en elektroniese fondsoordragte getref. In hierdie verband is elektroniese fondsoordrag as betalingsmetode ook bespreek. Outomatiese rekenaarverwerking het ook tot 'n verskeidenheid van nuwe soorte finansiele dienste aanleiding gegee. Daar is onderskei tussen klient-geaktiveerde stelsels (OTM'e, EFTPOS en tuisbankdienste) en fondsoordragstelsels wat deur die banke aangewend word om elektroniese fondsoordragte tussen banke te bewerkstellig en om finansiele boodskappe te versend. In die verband is die verrekeningsfunksie van klaringshuise en die regsaard daarvan ondersoek. 'n Beskrywing van die werksaamhede van die ACB, as plaaslike klaringshuis, is hierby ingesluit asook 'n bespreking van die verrekening van tjeks, die tydstip van betaling van tjeks en die status van die ACB. Ander relevante regsaspekte van die rekenarisering van die betalingstelsel wat ondersoek en bespreek is, is die gebruik van die sogenaamde elektroniese handtekening; die risikoreeling in die elektroniese betalingsverkeer en die daarstelling van voldoende sekuriteitsprosedures; die strafregtelike aanspreeklikheid van 'n beskuldigde in die geval van 'n ongemagtigde onttrekking of oordrag; vrae en probleme rondom bewysregtelike aangeleenthede; die inwerkingstelling van foutoplossingsprosedures en die daarstelling van 'n ombudsman om geskille te voorkom en te besleg; tjekretensie en die reg van die individu op sy privaatheid in die milieu van die elektroniese betalingsverkeer. Laastens is die regsverhoudinge tussen die deelnemende partye en die tydstip van betaling in die geval van 'n kredietoordrag ondersoek, en oorweging is aan regulering in die verband geskenk. / Private law / LL. D.