The Herald
Tapiwanashe Mangwiro Senior Business Reporter
The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) has given financial technology (fintech) services startup Uhuru Innovative Solutions (Uhuru) regulatory sandbox testing.
According to the RBZ, the fintech regulatory sandbox is intended for financial sector innovators who have already developed their service, product or business model and are ready to conduct a proof of concept through supervised market testing.
Uhuru founder and CEO Trust Jakarasi said: “Uhuru is one of the two fintech start-ups included in the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe’s regulatory sandbox and as a result we have set about testing our payment solution.”
The sandbox work is intended to bring fintech start-ups and traditional financial institutions closer together and perhaps foster relationships to improve financial services.
According to Jakarasi, the company’s platform is particularly important for Zimbabweans living in neighboring South Africa.
“We have created the perfect platform for migrant workers living in South Africa to seamlessly support their families here in Zimbabwe,” Jakarasi added.
The testing process is in collaboration with a local bank, which the fintech startup said it will announce in the coming weeks.
He added that the platform would also enable individuals as well as businesses “to exchange value, anywhere, anytime and at reasonable fees.”
This move may encourage other startups that have not registered for the fintech regulatory sandbox in that field to approach the RBZ. The more, the better for the central bank because it will have a larger constellation of businesses to work with and different perspectives.
Compounding problems for the diaspora community is also the strengthening US dollar, which in practice means that migrants now have to send more money in the currency they live in. Since the US Federal began its regular upward adjustment of interest rates, the dollar has risen against many major currencies.
This, combined with the high shipping fees, forces migrants to choose informal channels, which are just as effective but not as secure
According to Mr Jakarasi, Uhuru’s Whatsapp platform allows Zimbabweans living in South Africa to send as little as US$3 in airtime or electricity to support families back home. Furthermore, users of the platform can also make other payments such as hospital bills, school fees and utility bills.
Uhuru will support this innovation through its network of agents and sellers across the country.
The Sandbox Guidelines set out the objectives and principles of the testing framework, and provide guidance to the applicant on the application process and the information to be provided to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe.
The RBZ said: “The sandbox activities, to be tested, are those that the Reserve Bank would be able to monitor under the Reserve Bank Act, Chapter 22:15; Banking Act Chapter 24:20, Act on National Payment Systems Chapter 24:23; Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act, Chapter 9:24; The Currency Control Act chapter 22:05 and any other relevant regulations.”
In his 2022 medium-term monetary policy statement, Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe (RBZ) Governor John Mangudya insisted that the inclusion of Uhuru Innovative Solutions and Llyod Crowd Funding in the sandbox proved the RBZ’s “commitment to promoting responsible innovation.” At the time, the RBZ governor revealed that while Llyod Crowd Funding had already started, Uhuru would only start at a later date.
