Nigeria-based digital financial services company, Carbon, on Tuesday, unveiled a new iOS app, offering more platforms through which individuals can access instant loans in minutes. The development makes it the first digital lender in Africa to be able to initiate and complete an entire loan cycle via an iOS app, it said in a press release.
According to Carbon, the new iOS app is built with flexibility in mind, making it easier for customers in different markets to access the financial services they require. Similar to the existing Android app, individuals only need a mobile phone, data connection and a means of identification to get loans via the new application.
The new iOS app, which can be downloaded via Apple’s App Store, will initially be available in Nigeria before it is rolled out in Kenya and other markets as the company expands, Carbon said, adding that it will also be including a USSD channel in the coming months.
“We are really excited to add consumers on the Apple ecosystem to our network and we have channelled a lot of the learnings and user insights from the last four years on Android into this app,” CEO and co-founder of Carbon, Chijioke Dozie said. “As we establish ourselves as a Pan-African digital bank, we want to go everywhere with our customers and be innovative and versatile enough to fulfil their needs.”
Besides bringing onboard users of Apple phones, the introduction of an iOS application will ensure more people get access to basic financial services, thereby enhancing financial inclusion in the country. More than one in three Nigerian adults (37 percent/36.6 million) are financially excluded, with 40 percent (14.9 million) of the excluded having no access to financial institutions at all, a recent report by Enhancing Financial Innovation and Access (EFInA) shows.
With smartphone adoption predicted to quadruple (from 36 million to 144 million) by 2025, the addition of an iOS app represents an excellent opportunity to provide financial services to individuals that would otherwise be unbanked or underbanked, Carbon stated.
In Nigeria, for example, users can perform transactions or get loans at all 3 KYC tiers (low, medium and high value) provided by the Central Bank. This means more people (both banked and unbanked) at every level of the market can access Carbon’s services.
Carbon, a product of OneFi, is Nigeria’s leading digital financial services platform that empowers individuals and businesses across Africa with access to credit, simple payment solutions, high-yield investment opportunities and easy-to-use tools for personal financial management.
Since launching in 2016, the company has amassed 2.1 million users and disbursed more than $120 million in instant loans. It is a global company of over 90 employees with operations in Nigeria, England, and Kenya.
The company (formerly Paylater) also pioneered instant lending in Nigeria and was the first mobile app that provided access to credit digitally and without requesting individuals to present the documents and collateral traditionally associated with accessing loans.
