- Mukuru Wallet is set to allow millions of users in Zimbabwe to send and receive money locally and internationally via mobile phones.
- The service provides convenience and cost savings, such as paying for utilities, buying airtime, DStv bills and insurance.
- Launch of Mukuru Wallet comes after the company received a Deposit-Taking Microfinance Institution licence from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
Financial services platform Mukuru has launched a mobile wallet in Zimbabwe just weeks after the company received a Deposit-Taking Microfinance Institution (DTMFI) licence from the country’s central bank.
With more than three-million customers in Zimbabwe, Mukuru wallet is poised to offer several services, including its standout features: two pockets that allow users to send and receive money locally and internationally from mobile phones, safe storage of funds as well as a free cashout on international transfers.
“To avoid disappointing people who travel long distances to receive their remittances which they use for food, school fees and other essential services, we now have 250 of our own service points,” said Marc Carrie-Wilson, Send Money Home Zimbabwe CEO.
He added, “With a network stretching across urban and rural areas, we can reach more people than ever, providing constant cash availability and valuable digital solutions, such as the Mukuru Wallet, to the underserved communities.”
Mukuru Wallet accelerates financial inclusion in Zimbabwe
Mukuru Zimbabwe Financial Services CEO, Doug Tait-Knight, noted that this step will see Mukuru further enhance financial inclusion in the southern Africa country.
With this wallet, Doug Tait-Knight added that the firm will tap into its strength which lies in our robust network and technology, as well as our crispy notes that are always available, making this an exciting moment in our evolution in Zimbabwe.
“The wallet environment enables us to start providing additional value such as allowing more affordable domestic money transfers, supporting safety by eliminating the need for customers to walk around with large sums of money, and providing convenience and cost savings, such as paying for electricity, buying airtime, settling DSTV bills and paying for insurance from their couch. Our use of multiple channels also ensures accessibility for our customers,” explains Tait-Knight.
While currently focusing on private end users, soon organisations will be able to partner with Mukuru to make use of its local capabilities and global footprint to facilitate payments, such as distributing money to farmers, supporting payroll for small businesses and securing traceable aid distributions.
Currently, a number of organisations such as Cottco and the United Nations, through the World Food Programme, and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) have established partnership with Mukuru to enhance their service offering.
Mobile wallet service offers safety of customer money
Kevin Nyakotyo, Mukuru’s Enterprise Sales Manager for Zimbabwe and Zambia, added, “Our success in the end-user sector has enabled us to set in motion plans to enter the business sector. Whether it is for tobacco or cotton, payments made to farmers are often large sums of money. The Mukuru Wallet will make receiving these large sums of money far safer because beneficiaries won’t need to draw all their cash at the same time.
“We have a mandate to educate the market based on trends we see, and with this wallet, we are reaching out to both organisations and individuals and giving them peace of mind to know their funds will be safe and can be collected at any time. They can draw an amount that suits them with full confidence the cash will be available wherever they are, whenever they need it,” says Nyakotyo.
Mukuru is a financial services platform in Southern Africa that serves a customer base of over 17 million in Africa, Asia and Europe. With over 100 million transactions to date, Mukuru seeks to provide international money transfers across 60 countries.
Read also: Mukuru’s mobile wallet debuts in Malawi, boosting global transfers and financial access
