Jumo And MTN Have Launched A Mobile Money Loan Offering
Jumo and MTN have launched a mobile money loan offering
To provide loans to entrepreneurs and small businesses in Ivory Coast, Jumo has partnered with MANSA Bank and MTN Mobile Financial Services to form a joint venture.
Jumo, which was founded in 2015 and is backed by Goldman Sachs, provides savings and credit products to entrepreneurs in emerging markets, as well as financial services infrastructure to partners such as e-money operators and banks, according to the company.
The collaboration will see Jumo introduce its new short-term and small-scale loan product, VitKash, which was developed in partnership with MANSA and will be made available through MTN's mobile money platform in Ivory Coast, which is the company's most recent market.
In a press release from Jumo, the company stated that VitKash will be made available to micro-entrepreneurs who have previously been unable to obtain financing and who wish to establish a positive credit history through responsible loan management.
According to Bemah Kone, Jumo's Country Manager for Ivory Coast, entrepreneurs in the informal sector contribute an average of 60% of the country's GDP. However, less than 15% of entrepreneurs in the informal sector have access to banks as a source of financing. “The introduction of innovative financial technology products such as VitKash in the region helps to address this problem.”
Jumo focusing on Africa and Asia for now
For the time being, Jumo is primarily focused on Africa and Asia and is currently present in seven markets: Ghana; Tanzania; Kenya; Uganda; Zambia; Pakistan; and the Ivory Coast, among others. According to Crunchbase, the startup has received a total of $156.7 million in funding to date.
The company claims that in its more than five years of operation, it has helped disburse over $3 billion in loans while also reaching more than 18 million customers and small businesses worldwide. Uber, Barclays Bank, Ecobank, Tigo, Airtel, and now MTN and MANSA Bank are among the companies that have signed on as clients.
In the words of Buhle Goslar, the CEO of Jumo Africa, "Jumo is rapidly becoming the platform of choice for large banks looking to deploy capital to new market segments." “We are looking forward to bringing our successful business model to Côte d'Ivoire and collaborating with our partners to achieve positive results.”
It is the first time that Jumo has entered into a partnership with MANSA and MTN in Ivory Coast, a country into which it expanded last year. According to Jumo CEO Kone, the company's recent expansion was spurred by a number of factors that make the West African nation a "attractive market" for the company.
Good Enviroment for Market
“The Ivory Coast possesses all of the characteristics of a promising market with significant growth potential. There are several of these: low banking penetration, a large mobile money base, limited access to financing, and a high demand for digital lending products, according to Kone, who spoke with TechCabal by email.
According to the Ivorian telecom regulator, the country's total number of mobile money users increased to 20.8 million as of March 31, 2021, from 13.4 million at the same time last year, according to the same regulator. The penetration rate of mobile money currently stands at 76.9 percent.
Kone stated that the BCEAO (the central bank of eight Francophone West African countries) has a strong commitment to improving financial inclusion and financial literacy in the WAMU zone. West and Central Africa are the company's next frontiers, and the regions are primed for growth.
