Despite already offering cheap voice and broadband deals to its customers, First National Bank is extending its presence in the space by offering cellphone contracts with handsets at subsidised rates in conjunction with Cell C.

In a move meant to drive customers to electronic banking, customers can apply for a contract via the existing account opening process in branches or online and be vetted immediately.

Each of the three contracts on offer includes a handset, a monthly airtime allowance and bundled SMS messages. Users can also top up their accounts with prepaid vouchers should they exceed their allocated minutes or messages.

The first offer includes a Nokia X2-01 on a Control Chat 50 contract, which includes R50 airtime per month, 25 SMS messages and costs R39/month.

The second contract is a Control Chat 100 contract with a Nokia C3 handset. It includes R115 airtime per month and 100 SMS messages and costs R79/month.

The third option is a Samsung Galaxy Y on a Cell C’s Control Chat 125 at R99/month and includes R145 airtime and 100 SMS messages per month.

Ashwin Gobind, FNB’s head of department for product sales, says both the bank and Cell C are subsidising the new contracts. FNB is offering airtime incentives to those who sign up for one of the contracts. If new customers use cellphone banking to do three transactions a month they will be rewarded with R10, R20 and R30 airtime in the first, second and third months respectively.

The packages are also subsidised by Cell C and are being offered at lower rates than Cell C’s current rates. For example, the Control Chat 50 contract normally costs R50/month, but is R39/month on this deal. Similarly, the Control Chat 125 is being offered at R99/month, which is normally the going rate on the lower Control Chat 100 package. — Staff reporter, TechCentral