Author: deejaynick20

By Our writer

It has been widely documented that cash is one of the channels through which COVID-19 spreads.

While most parents are used to giving their children pocket money in cash, this, given the current pandemic, greatly exposes them to the virus.

In a bid to tame this, however, Pebuu Limited, a Financial Technology Company (FinTech) innovated the Pebuu School Product that has seen cash pocket money replaced with an electronic wallet.

The product, according to John Paul Semyalo, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, has been piloted in a number of schools and is working well.

“This is a post COVID-19 innovation because students will no longer be open to cash; they can now use their wallet which can be in form of their thumb print or a unique number,” Semyalo says, adding that it will help create a cashless environment in schools.

Pebuu, which is a women-centric brand, uses agents, who are spread across the country, to serve its customers.

Semyalo notes that the firm, which trades as Pebuu Africa, currently has 2,400 merchants countrywide, with 80% of them using Point-Of-Sale (POS) machines while 20% use a mobile App on their smartphones.

Pebuu partnered with telecommunications companies – MTN, Airtel, Africell and Uganda Telecom Limited (UTL) to distribute their products – mobile money, airtime, data, Over the Top Tax and other services, through its payment platform.

The FinTech started off with four agents five years ago, carrying only airtime as telecoms were at first adamant to on-boarding any FinTech for mobile money and the other services.

It is also partnering with banks, with three of them – Stanbic, GT Bank and Centenary, already on board, according to Semyalo, who adds that they are in advance stages of on-boarding other banks on to the platform.

“When you visit a Pebuu agent, you are able to cash-in or cash-out mobile money, pay your bills or do banking at the lowest cost possible,” Semyalo says.

Pebuu, which is among the firms taking part in the second edition of the 40-Days 40-FinTechs initiative, also has a Pebuu Care product, a micro credit solution that focuses on women and youth.

The product enables agents to borrow money in real time and pay back the loan in 24 hours or 30 days.

Commenting about the 40 Days 40 FinTechs, Semyalo said: “It is a great initiative; it brings together the different FinTechs to share ideas and the one unique thing is that it opens up the Ugandan FinTechs to the global space. Through this initiative, local FinTechs are promoted globally, which creates visibility for us so that when we decide to go out there and look for global partnership, in form of grants, equity or low interest financing, it becomes easy.”

The 40-Days 40-FinTechs initiative is organised by HiPipo in partnership with Crosslake Technologies, ModusBox and Mojaloop Foundation, and sponsored by the Gates Foundation.

The initiative provides a platform for FinTechs and stakeholders in the digital and financial technology space to exhibit their products and share ideas.

Semyalo also notes that the firm uses Level One Project principles such as Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and real time settlement, which he says are key for competitiveness.

He explains that when on-boarding agents, the FinTech relies on KYC from telecoms or banks as every agent is required to have either a registered mobile phone number or that of the company’s director or a bank account.

The HiPipo Chief Executive Officer Innocent Kawooya notes that the 40-Days 40-FinTech project seeks to boost the African FinTech ecosystem to enable innovators enjoy sustainable profitability to help them design and deploy affordable and inclusive financial services for the poor.

He alludes that FinTech in Africa offers attractive opportunities and that investors are rightfully picking interest in the various startups that are offering a plethora of services, ranging from payments and lending, remittances, cross-border transfers and neobanks, among others.

“Each of these services solves unique sets of challenges. That is why we have this initiative because we want to contribute towards solving the unique challenges that the everyday person faces.”

Challenges

However, Semyalo notes that while the FinTech space in Uganda has evolved over the last five years, it is still quite hard and tough as most FinTechs are still grappling with liquidity challenges.

“For you to survive in the FinTech space, you must have liquidity; you must be aggressive, must be frugal, daring and brave,” he says, adding that those that will benefit are only those that will be resilient to celebrate their 10^th birthday.

By Our writer.

Africa has been urged to take advantage of the current growth in digital finance to leap into the future.

According to the Xente Tech Limited chief executive officer, Allan Rwakatungu, adopting digital payments will allow faster financial inclusion and trade, an opportunity that the continent should take advantage of.

He notes that people’s adoption of digital payment methods and cross-border payments are on increase, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic. This, he says, has created an opportunity for financial Technology companies (FinTechs) and the African continent to leap into the future.

Xente Tech Limited is a mobile financial services and e-commerce platform that offers an all-in-one business account that helps business owners and finance teams manage expenses, make payments to team members, suppliers and to collect payments.

Key among its solutions are disbursements – sending mobile money, airtime or data groups of people and payment collections – collecting money from mobile money, Visa or MasterCard, on behalf of businesses.

Rwakatungu adds that the firm is also in the process of launching two other solutions including an Online Payments solution that will enable businesses make online payments with virtual Visa cards and an Expense Management solution that will enable businesses make payments for expenses such as fuel, meals, per diem and other expenses using cards.

This, Rwakatungu explains, will help drive Uganda towards a cashless economy.

“A lot of businesses today manage their expenses manually using cash or cheques. This means that when one needs money for everyday expenses, they have to walk to their accounts department. But now when people are working remotely, that is not possible anymore.

“However, this solution will help businesses continue to do everyday business payments during this pandemic and a lot of businesses are using our solution to pay staff, suppliers and other stakeholders during this pandemic from home,” Rwakatungu says.

While Xente has a number of clients including Jumia, M-Kopa and UAP, among others, Rwakatungu says that about 70% of the FinTech’s clients are women, who he says have been facilitated to work more efficiently.

40 Days 40 FinTechs

Xente Tech is among the 40 financial technology companies participating in the second edition of the 40-Days 40-FinTechs initiative, organized by HiPipo in partnership with Crosslake Technologies, ModusBox and Mojaloop Foundation, and sponsored by the Gates Foundation.

The initiative which provides a platform for FinTechs and stakeholders in the digital and financial technology space to exhibit their products and share ideas, seeks to boost the African FinTech ecosystem to enable innovators enjoy sustainable profitability to help them design and deploy affordable and inclusive financial services for the poor.

 “Xente has participated in 40-DayS 40 FinTechs initiative because we believe in partnership and collaboration to move the FinTech industry forward,” Rwakatungu says.

For better service provision, Rwakatungu says that Xente implements LevelOneProject principles that put forward guidance for real time movement and settlement of transactions, which is important especially for people at the bottom of the pyramid.

“We put emphasis on things like progressive Know-Your-Customer (KYC), instant payments, same day settlements and ensuring that our customer care is responsive. To us, these principles give us a competitive advantage.”

Rwakatungu alludes that people are increasingly adopting digital payment methods and cross-border payments, accelerated by the COVID-19 pandemic, which has created an opportunity for FinTechs and the African continent to leap into the future.

He adds that adopting digital payments will allow faster financial inclusion and faster trade.

Solutions lined up

The HiPipo chief executive officer Innocent Kawooya also alludes that the second edition of the 40-Days 40 FinTechs will showcase the best of the multitudes of solutions and products in the digital space.

These will include discussions on and showcases of transformative technologies in the spheres like RoboAdvisor, payments, RegTech, InsurTech, lending, crowd funding and Neobanking, among others.

“Also in the showcase will be cryptocurrencies, Interledger, blockchain, digicash, lucre, cross-border payments, remittances, retirement schemes and new ways of operating bonds,” Kawooya notes, adding that more digital innovation will come in regards to Big Data and Artificial Intelligence.

Kawooya also alludes that FinTech in Africa offers attractive opportunities, especially for attractive startups.

“Investors are rightfully picking interest in the various startups that are offering a plethora of services, ranging from payments and lending, remittances, cross-border transfers and neobanks.

“Each of these services solves unique sets of challenges. For example; with cross-border payments comes the opportunity to erase the outrageous rates and bureaucratic bottlenecks that stymie transactions and thus trade among African countries,” Kawooya says.

According to Kawooya, the 40-Days 40 FinTechs initiative seeks to give exposure to the best emerging and transformative innovators of Africa.

“We able to implement this project successfully due to the generous support of the Gates Foundation through the LevelOneProject Initiative. 

The second edition of the #40Days40FinTechs project is expected to end on August 26, 2021.

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