The Tanzanian affiliate of the US-based Foundation for International Community Assistance (FINCA International) recently began offering a service called HaloYako that allows people to open savings accounts via mobile phones. There is no fee to use the service or maintain the associated account. In fact, customers can earn free mobile airtime by using the service to set and meet savings goals.
FINCA Tanzania, which is also known as FINCA Microfinance Bank, reports that 30,000 customers opened accounts via HaloYako during its first two weeks of operation. FINCA Tanzania CEO Issa Ngwegwe argued, “This goes to show how FinTech plays a critical role in lowering transaction costs and expanding access to financial services.”
FINCA Tanzania is a commercial bank with a loan portfolio of USD 30 million, 99,000 clients and 24 branches as of 2017.
Founded in 1984, FINCA International reported total assets of USD 1.1 billion and an operating loss of USD 2.8 million as of 2015. FINCA microfinance institutions serve approximately 1.9 million people in 20 countries as of 2017.
Sources and Additional Resources
FINCA Tanzania press release
http://www.finca.co.tz/news/finca-accelerating-financial-inclusion-through-fintech-innovation-in-tanzania/
FINCA International
https://www.finca.org/
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