Waya, a fintech company that enables Africans and immigrants to easily access banking services and affordably transfer money across borders, has announced the upcoming launch of its full-service digital bank and money transfer app. which will focus on the African diaspora.
The Waya app will be available on the App Store and Play Store on September 16 for early adopters and will be available to the public from October 1.
What the Waya app does:
The Waya application will allow users
- Open bank accounts digitally, and
- Within minutes, send money to other Waya users for free,
- Spend using your Waya cards linked to your Waya account and
- To send money to more than 10 countries in Africa.
- Remittances will be sent to mobile wallets and bank accounts across Africa.
Waya also allows users to make domestic bank transfers within the US to pay others or pay bills in the countries where they live and work. Waya also plans to provide other financial services such as credit, savings accounts and investment opportunities for immigrants, to enable them to have more financial security and financial inclusion in the countries where they work and live.
“Waya’s mission is to unlock financial barriers, provide unlimited financial access and opportunity for millions of African immigrants living and working outside their home countries,” said Dr. David Wachira, former World Bank finance specialist and now Co-Founder and COO of Waya. .
He also highlighted the opportunity to offer banking and remittance services to the millions of immigrants who contribute more than $1.3 trillion to the US economy annually. “The African diaspora sends more than $50 billion dollars home each year and loses up to $3 billion in hidden fees and high exchange rates when sending money home. Not only do we want to help them move money back home faster, cheaper, and more affordably, but we also want to enable them to store, spend, and transact more than 80% of their income left behind in the countries where they live and work. Dr. added Wachira.
Mr. Fred Ndavi, Director of Impact and Strategy, noted that Waya supports 8 of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and seeks to drive greater financial inclusion for immigrant communities in the US banking channels.
“For many African immigrants living and working in the US and other parts of the world, opening a bank account is often marred by a myriad of obstacles and restrictions, while sending money remains the most costly and costly financial process. inefficient for any immigrant. We do not believe this is fair,” Ndavi said in a statement.
“Mobile Money is one of the biggest African success stories. Waya wants to bring the convenience of mobile money transactions to banking in the US, allowing users to transact with each other while allowing diasporas to send money to Africa quickly, convenient and affordable,” said MR Hempstone Maroria, co-founder and CEO, adding that 1 in 9 people around the world receive support from remittances.
“The launch of Waya is a great revelation that we can offer solutions to our own problems as a diaspora and contribute positively to the growth and financial empowerment of our people,” concluded Dr. David Wachira.
