Homisco Global Communications Solutions

Barcelona, February 16, 2010

Zain, the leading mobile network operator in the Middle East and Africa, has won the inaugural GSMA’s 2010 ‘Mobile Money for the Unbanked Service’ award for ‘Zap’, its mobile commerce service. The announcement was made at the Global Mobile Awards, the industry’s leading annual prize ceremony, at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona that runs from February 15 to 18, 2010.

The 'Mobile Money for the Unbanked Service' is a new award, established to recognize innovative mobile banking around the world that pioneers the roll out of low-cost financial services to millions of people in countries where traditional financial services are either not available or not within easy reach. It is aligned to the international GSM Association’s (GSMA) Mobile Money for the Unbanked (MMU) initiative, which was created to connect the unconnected and improve the social, economic and environmental well-being of the world's population living on less than US$2 a day by supporting and encouraging the development of sustainable mobile money solutions.

“This is yet another indication that Zain is at the cutting edge of technological development,” said Zain Africa CEO, Chris Gabriel. “Not only are we pushing the boundaries of where the mobile phone can take us, we are showing that we can improve lives and make sustainable economic contributions in the countries where we operate. Time and again Zain is showing that when it promises ‘A wonderful world’, it is more than a slogan.

To read more on this subject, please see Zain's press release.

Zain’s ‘Zap’ mobile commerce service is powered by Homisco's mWallet solution.

About Homisco

Homisco is a global provider of advanced telecom solutions for fixed line and wireless carriers. Homisco’s non-proprietary platforms and hosted applications enable service providers to quickly deploy cost effective revenue-generating services in traditional TDM circuit-switched and next generation IP networks.  Core technologies include prepaid and convergent telecom billing, voice and data messaging including SMS, USSD and OTAF services, mobile commerce and call center automation. Headquartered in Melrose, MA, the company serves thousands of customers throughout the world and has a particularly strong presence in Africa and Asia.

About Zain

Zain is a leading telecommunications operator across the Middle East providing mobile voice and data services to over 34.2 million active customers as at 30 June 2010 with a commercial presence in 8 countries. Zain is listed on the Kuwait Stock Exchange. Zain operates in the following countries: Bahrain, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Sudan. In Lebanon, the company manages 'mtc-touch' on behalf of the government. In Morocco, Zain has a stake in Wana Telecom through a joint venture.

For more information, please visit http://www.zain.com