Fintech startup Sendwave has unveiled a new product that will allow users to earn interest and pay reduced fees on international remittances. The new product dubbed Sendwave Pay is targeting Kenyans living in the US.
The solution provides existing Sendwave users access to a FDIC-insured bank account with an accompanying debit card. This makes Sendwave the only major remittance provider with such an offering in the US.
Sendwave Pay, which is available to users via the Sendwave app on iOS and Android, will offer uses a bank account with no hidden account creation, maintenance or minimum balance fees. Users will also be able to also ccess to up to 0.4% improvement on exchange rates and up to 25% savings on transaction fees on remittances to Kenya, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, Nigeria, and Liberia when using the funds in their accounts.
Sendwave Pay comes with a debit card to use on everyday transactions. Users will also be reimbursements for international transaction fees when using their Sendwave Pay debit card outside of the US;and earn up to 0.51% APY on the money held in their Sendwave Pay account
For migrants, opening a bank account is considered an important step to establishing themselves and helps to achieve financial autonomy. Sendwave Pay is the first neobank offering within Zepz, the Group powering global remittance brands Sendwave and WorldRemit. Zepz intends to continually invest in migrant-focused financial offerings around the world, including Kenya.
Eric Huynh, Product Lead, Sendwave Pay, Zepz said “The way that people use and access money has drastically changed over the last decade. We created Sendwave Pay to better meet the needs of our customers, who are dynamically considering how they manage their money both for themselves and for loved ones abroad.”
Zepz’s launch of Sendwave Pay comes amid an economic slowdown and higher borrowing costs in the US, which is the leading source of remittances to Kenya. Kenyans living in the US sent a total of $2.33 billion back home in 2022, representing more than half of the total $4.02 billion of diaspora remittances in 2022, according to data from the Central Bank of Kenya. (CBK).
Follow us on Telegram, Twitter, and Facebook, or subscribe to our weekly newsletter to ensure you don’t miss out on any future updates. Send tips to info@techtrendske.co.ke
