Kenyan fintech startup Chumz, which helps users set and achieve their savings and investment goals through behavior-based prompts and mobile money deposits, is testing its solution to go live in Rwanda after reaching 200,000 registered users in its national market.
Formed at the end of 2019, Chumz worked on a prototype in 2020, contacted the regulator for a license in late 2020 and received one a year later. The startup has created a goals-based mobile app that helps users save and invest money from their mobile money accounts, with as little as US$0.05.
The platform works by routing funds collected from a user’s mobile money account to a licensed fund manager, who then offers a return on the fund. The interest earned is then redistributed to individual customers.
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One of the unique features of Chumz is that it encourages users to save based on their behavior.
“For example, if a user spends money in a pub, the app suggests investing some of that money instead of spending it all. Likewise, if a user receives mobile money, the app prompts them to save some of the money. Our app provides users with a simple, convenient and accessible way to save and invest, helping them achieve their financial goals,” said Samuel Njuguna, co-founder of Chumz, who is also behind the Kenyan mobile money startup. Chura.
This innovative approach has been a success, with Chumz reaching 200,000 registered users in Kenya. It is currently testing its solution which will be put into operation in Rwanda later this year.
“Our next big step forward is to reach one million users in Kenya by 2026 and also be operational in Uganda, Tanzania and Botswana by then,” Njuguna said.
The startup also launched a new feature, the Superfan Challenge, where users save and invest based on the performance of their favorite football team.
“For example, if your team wins, the app prompts you to save a set amount,” Njuguna said.
Njuguna said the startup had identified an opportunity to serve the retail investment market, which was underserved by most fund managers, who primarily cater to institutional investors or high-net-worth individuals.
“We have seen segments such as parents using the app to educate their children on financial literacy and at the same time creating goals for them on the app,” Njuguna said. “The majority of savers and investors are women. »