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What to watch out forMaximum daily limits. Transaction limits depend on how you are sending the money, while a total 24-hour cap of $9,000 applies to all transactions being sent by you out of the US.Changing fees. Depending on where you are sending to, how you are paying and how you are transferring money, your fees may vary. Although a base fee of $3.99 is applied to most transfers, keep an eye on this category when actually completing your transfer to make sure it doesn’t change.No hedging options. WorldRemit only offers one-off transfers, unlike some of its competitors that offer additional tools to help you save money. Hedging tools are most often used to lock in an exchange rate, helping you save money on future transfers if the market shifts against your position.Inconsistent markups. Exchange rates vary through WorldRemit and depend not only on the currency you are sending to but also on the destination country. Expect mid-market markups anywhere from 1-4%.

Easy-to-use website. Signing up and sending money can be done in as little as a few minutes, and support can be accessed through phone, email, live chat and FAQs.Worldwide network. Customers in more than 50 countries can send funds to over 150 countries using a variety of methods, including bank transfers, cash pickup at thousands of locations, door-to-door delivery, delivery to services like Alipay and more.Flexible payment options. Pay with a credit or debit card, from your bank account, through Apple or Google Pay and even with prepaid cards.Fast transfers. Cash pickups, WorldRemit Wallet transfers and airtime top-ups are typically available instantly after sending, while mobile money and bank deposits may take one or more business days to process.

Cash pickups, WorldRemit Wallet transfers and airtime top-ups are typically available instantly after sending, while mobile money and bank deposits may take one or more business days to process.

“Common investor wisdom is to stay in your market and dominate. This assumes that you are expanding on your own but we believe that by collaborating and partnering deliberately, Carbon and other tech companies can scale faster and build more enduring platforms,” Chijioke Dozie, chief executive officer (CEO) and co-founder of Carbon, said. 

Nigerian fintech startup Carbon has set up a US$100,000 pan-African fund to address the lack of funding and support holding back entrepreneurs on the continent.Consumer lending platform Carbon, which rebranded in April as parent company OneFi continues to transition into being a full digital banking platform after raising US$5 million in debt funding and acquiring Nigerian payments startup Amplify, has been busy expanding its offering, and has also moved into new markets with a Kenyan launch.Its “Disrupt fund” is the first of its kind by an African fintech startup, and will invest up to US$10,000 per startup for five per cent equity. Portfolio companies will also be given access to Carbon’s API, allowing them to leverage Carbon’s growing customer base and innovative technology platform to get to market faster. Carbon expects the initiative to spark more collaboration and further investment that should drive growth across the ecosystem, and is accepting applications from companies with operations in Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Ivory Coast and Egypt. Startups looking to apply for the fund must have a functioning product, be post-revenue, and be looking to operate in multiple countries. The fund has a wide investment mandate but target sectors include insurance, health and education.“There are many excellent companies across the continent looking for the kind of scale Nigeria offers and we are excited to partner with them to provide the support and financial investment they need. We are equally excited to expand beyond Nigeria and Kenya by working with a new generation of innovators across the continent and sharing our experience to tackle common obstacles to growth.”

Nigerian fintech startup Carbon has set up a US$100,000 pan-African fund to address the lack of funding and support holding back entrepreneurs on the continent.

M-Pesa is a virtual banking system that provides transaction services through a SIM card. Once the SIM has been inserted into the card slot of the mobile device, users can make payments and transfer money to vendors and family members with SMS messages. Users with no bank accounts can access the numerous M-Pesa outlets distributed across the country. The money that needs to be stored is given to the kiosk attendant, who transfers the amount in digital form to the user’s M-Pesa’s account. Cash collected from M-Pesa is deposited in bank accounts held by Safaricom. The bank accounts serve as regular checking accounts and are insured up to a maximum of 100,000 shillings (or $1000) by the Deposit Protection Fund. M-Pesa provides receipts as proof of transaction. For a transaction to take place, both parties have to exchange each other’s phone numbers because the phone numbers act as account numbers. After settlement, both parties receive an SMS notification with the full name of the counterparty and the amount of funds deposited or withdrawn from the user’s account. The mobile receipt, which is received within seconds, helps to promote transparency for all individuals involved in a transaction.

“Businesses, as well as Kenyans and expatriates with friends and family abroad, send over US$18 billion to other African countries, Asia and Europe annually with several billion Kenya Shillings going through the Simbapay network. Therefore, this service will offer Prime Bank’s customers a world-class fully digital international money transfer service,” added Karanja.

Prime Bank’s Director for Business Development, Vijay Kantaria, said the tier 2 lender has embarked on investment in technology through partnering with various FinTechs to accelerate its digital integration plan.

WorldRemit is just one of many different money transfer services that have become increasingly popular, especially since coronavirus has taken hold. Money transfer services are perfect for moving funds around, and thanks to quite a lot of competition they're now a relatively cheap and easy way of getting the job done. WorldRemit was set up in 2010, is headquartered in London and sits in the same marketplace as the likes of Azimo, Transferwise, CurrencyFair, Lebara Money Transfer, PayPal, Zelle and other competitors.

“Through our digital platforms, we aim to make available a one stop solution to our customers in terms of funds transfer and with the inclusion of SimbaPay, our customers will now send money to friends and family across the world at the comfort of their mobile phones,” added Mr. Kantaria.

Through SimbaPay, Prime Bank customers will now be able to instantly and securely send money directly to bank accounts or mobile wallets across 15 countries in Africa, Europe, and Asia including India, United Kingdom, China (WeChat Pay), Germany, Uganda among others. Commenting on the partnership, SimbaPay’s Head of Operations Victor Karanja noted that the service will provide a seamless platform for Prime Bank’s customer base to send money abroad at the click of a button.

This is not the first cross border transfer initiative by SimbaPay. The London-based company supports more cost-effective and efficient transfer of funds across Africa and Asia (11 countries – 9 African, 2 Asian). These are Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Ghana, Madagascar, Niger, India and now China.

SimbaPay developed a third-party payment aggregator that enables funds delivery between Kenyan merchants and their largest source of imports, China. Through SimbaPay’s international money transfer service, merchants and individuals in Kenya would be able to send money to China’s WeChat Pay users from Family Bank’s PesaPap mobile banking application. This can be achieved through M-Pesa and a USSD service

Forging another link between Africa and China’s digital economies, the African-focused money transfer startup SimbaPay and Kenya’s Family Bank have launched an instant payment service from East Africa to China.

Digital money transfer service WorldRemit has partnered with Chinese smartphone maker Huawei to enable the international transfer of money across Huawei's mobile services in Africa, the companies said on Tuesday. Mobile money services that allow customers to transfer funds using their phones have proved hugely popular in parts of Africa, particularly where people have less access to traditional bank accounts.

Mobile money services that allow customers to transfer funds using their phones have proved hugely popular in parts of Africa, particularly where people have less access to traditional bank accounts.

Digital money transfer service WorldRemit has partnered with Chinese smartphone maker Huawei [HWT.UL] to enable the international transfer of money across Huawei’s mobile services in Africa, the companies said on Tuesday.

“International remittance is a very important mobile money service in Africa, and our partnership with WorldRemit will bring international remittances directly to Huawei’s customers across the continent,” David Chen, Vice-President of Huawei Southern Africa, said in a statement.

Through the digital platforms, Prime Bank aims to make available a one stop solution to its customers in terms of funds transfer. With the inclusion of SimbaPay, the customers will be able to send money to friends and family across the world using their mobile phones.

To access the service, customers will need to login to the bank’s mobile banking app – PrimeMobi, then click on International Money Transfer icon on the homescreen. After confirming the amount to be sent, the sender’s bank account will be debited, and money credited to the beneficiary instantly.

Digital money transfer service WorldRemit has launched a new cash pickup service in Algeria and Lebanon, according to a press release.In Lebanon, funds recipients can collect cash from more than 130 branches of Wings International. Algerian recipients can collect cash from any branch of Trust Bank Algeria across the country. With the WorldRemit app or website, people in more than 50 countries can send instant, secure money transfers to more than 125 destinations, the release said.

In Lebanon, funds recipients can collect cash from more than 130 branches of Wings International. Algerian recipients can collect cash from any branch of Trust Bank Algeria across the country. With the WorldRemit app or website, people in more than 50 countries can send instant, secure money transfers to more than 125 destinations, the release said.

With the WorldRemit app or website, people in more than 50 countries can send instant, secure money transfers to more than 125 destinations, the release said.

Founded in 2004, Mukuru has established a powerful brand affinity with customers built on trust, reliability, and local engagement. The company has grown to operate over 90 remittance corridors, enabling more than 5 million individuals to receive funds to cover living expenses, school fees, medical expenses, and utility bills. Mukuru is supported by world-class regulatory and compliance systems, highly scalable technology architecture, and a comprehensive sales and distribution network.

Their website allows individuals from North America and Europe to send payments for electricity bills, health insurance, school fees, and more to individuals in Ethiopia. Ethiopay fits the unique financial technology needs of Ethiopians. They hope to help Ethiopians in the diaspora reach individuals at home by providing seamless payments. Hadgu and Yohannes entered this year’s competition to share their innovative venture and gain exposure.

Their website allows individuals from North America and Europe to send payments for electricity bills, health insurance, school fees, and more to individuals in Ethiopia. Ethiopay fits the unique financial technology needs of Ethiopians. They hope to help Ethiopians in the diaspora reach individuals at home by providing seamless payments. Hadgu and Yohannes entered this year’s competition to share their innovative venture and gain exposure.

They are a centralized global payment platform that currently enables users a simple and convenient way to transfer and/or purchase cross border bill pay, money transfer, mobile data, and mobile minutes between the United States and Ethiopia. Ethiopay co-founders Daniel Hadgu (B.B.A. ‘20) and Minas Yohannes (B.B.A. ‘20) are Eritrean descent while Michael Gizachew is of Ethiopian descent and they all struggled to send funds between the U.S. and their family abroad. Together they created a way to affordably and efficiently transfer money overseas.

Smartel Money Ltd is company that is rooted in the Kingdom of Lesotho. The aim and focus of Smartel money is to provide mobile payment services, savings & credit and monetary transfers and serve thus as an alternative to traditional banking systems. We aim to provide to individuals, institutions, organizations, multi-industry sectors and governments with the cutting edge, fresh and innovative financial management system in this ever changing world. We also aim to improve the quality of cloud computing (payment as a service) and interaction between computers and people to achieve their payment processes.

Smartel Money Ltd is company that is rooted in the Kingdom of Lesotho. The aim and focus of Smartel money is to provide mobile payment services, savings & credit and monetary transfers and serve thus as an alternative to traditional banking systems.

Ghanaian fintech startup Zeepay has raised a US$940,000 seed funding round to enable it to continue to scale and roll out its services across the continent. Zeepay is focused on digital rails to connect digital assets such as mobile money wallets, cards, ATMs, bank accounts and digital tokens to international money transfer operators, payments, subscriptions, international airtime and refugee payments. 

Lagos, Nigeria – Leading digital financial services company, Carbon, has released it’s 2019 financial statements audited by KPMG, detailing its product growth and $17.5mm in revenue.Carbon began operations in 2012 and within the space of six years, it grew revenue steadily, reaching an all-time high of $17.5mm in full-year 2019. In the same year, Carbon expanded its product offerings to the Kenyan market and it’s disbursement volumes have grown from N13bn (2018) to N23bn.Formerly called Paylater, Carbon pioneered instant lending in Nigeria and was the first mobile app to provide access to credit digitally and without requesting individuals to present the documents and collateral traditionally associated with accessing loans. Earlier this year, Carbon introduced its iOS app and USSD (*1303#) service. It also announced its Disrupt Fund, a $100,000 Pan-African fund to address the lack of capital for African tech startups.“The company will continue to share it’s audited financials annually, thus upholding a culture of transparency and accountability,” says Ngozi Dozie, Founder of Carbon.So far this year, Carbon has introduced multiple new features for its customer base including Carbon Express: a keyboard allowing users to make payments from any social app, periodic investments, free bank transfers, monthly wallet interest, and more.Carbon also plans to introduce debit cards, a reward program for loyal customers and SME accounts for entrepreneurs, in the months to come.You can find the full annual report here (https://bit.ly/2YNuvPw).About Carbon: Carbon (https://getCarbon.co) is a pan-African digital financial institution accessible via smartphones and which provides individuals with access to credit, a fee-free/interest-earning wallet, simple payments solutions, high-yield investment opportunities and easy-to-use tools for personal financial management.Our mission is to empower opportunity globally through friction-free finance that empowers individuals and businesses. We are a global company of over 100 employees with operations in Nigeria, England and Kenya.

Leading digital financial services company Carbon from Nigeria posted all-time high growth last year

Carbon began operations in 2012 and within the space of six years, it grew revenue steadily, reaching an all-time high of $17.5mm in full-year 2019. In the same year, Carbon expanded its product offerings to the Kenyan market and it’s disbursement volumes have grown from N13bn (2018) to N23bn.

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