Top 10 fintech apps in Nigeria by user ratings on Play Store as of August 2022
Globally, fintech has become the in-thing in the financial sector. In Nigeria, like the rest of the world, the ecosystem of companies using technology to deliver financial services has revolutionized access to financial and banking services.
The potential of these digital banks has seen global venture capitals pump funds into fintechs in Nigeria. As more fintechs emerge every day, the market is becoming highly competitive as target customers now have many choices from the range of companies offering innovative financial services via mobile apps.
Interestingly, as more Nigerians embrace the fintech apps, for their convenience and ease of access to financial services on the go, they also provide feedback through ratings and reviews based on their experience.
Nairametrics took a look at the ratings of these apps on the Google Play Store by users who have used them. Here’s what we found:
Renmoney (3.4)
Renmoney is a microfinance bank that prides itself on being Nigeria’s most convenient lending company with innovations that deliver unparalleled service experiences. They provide both personal and micro business loans from N50,000 to N6 million.
The Renmoney app is a loan app in Nigeria that fast tracks loan applications and credit disbursements. It collects information seamlessly, verifies loan applications and pays out money within 24 hours. On Google Play, the app has registered 500,000 downloads. The rating of 8,732 users is 3.4.
Piggy vest (4.1)
PiggyVest provides its over 3 million customers with savings and investment tools, but it is not exactly a full-fledged digital bank. The company offers fixed, flexible, goal-oriented and automated savings options, as well as pre-approved primary and secondary investment opportunities with low-medium risk for 6-12 months.
On Google Play, the Piggyvest app, which has been downloaded by over one million customers, was rated 4.1 out of 5. The rating was made by 41,032 users of the app.
JumiaPay (4.2)
E-commerce company Jumia first introduced its JumiaPay app in 2016 and is now used to pay for more than 50% of sales on the platform. The company also recently launched consumer loans on the app via collaboration with banks.
Ranked as one of the most downloaded fintech apps on the Play Store, Jumia pay had received over 5 million downloads in August. For the 130,000 users who have reviewed the app, the quality of experience on JumiaPay is 4.3 out of 5.
Paga (4.3)
Paga is a mobile money solution that offers transfers, bill payments, top-ups and even remittance services. The company has 17 million users and is also available to unbanked, offline users through a mobile money agent network.
On Google Play, the Paga app has surpassed 500,000 downloads. The app is rated 4.3 out of 8,704 users. Although it has a larger number of customers offline, the number of downloads and reviews on the Paga app places it behind other apps above with the same rating.
Carbon (4,4)
Carbon is a CBN-licensed digital bank that also offers a loan facility and investment options, in addition to regular digital banking features such as debit cards. Accounts are enabled for P2P payments, as well as bill payments and mobile recharge.
Although the fintech company currently has over two million customers according to its website, the app on Google Play has been downloaded by one million plus customers. The app users believe that the app deserved a rating of 4.4 based on their experiences. The app has registered 128,128 user reviews as of this month.
Kuda (4.4)
The US$500 million fintech is fully licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). Although Kuda is based in London, it is currently focused on the Nigerian market. Kuda accounts come with a free debit card, budget and spending controls, and transfers and savings features too. The bank has also killed maintenance fees and provides users with a specific list of free transfers each month.
With over one million downloads, the Kuda app enjoys positive reviews from many of its users. As of this month, 160,790 users had reviewed the app and given it a 4.4 rating.
Palmcredit (4.4)
With over 5 million downloads, Palmcredit is a loan app in Nigeria owned by Newedge Finance Limited where users can get unsecured loans. As one of the most downloaded fintech apps, there is no doubt that many Nigerians avail themselves of the loan services offered through the app. Google Play shows that 173,00 users had given the app a rating of 4.2 as of August this year.
FairMoney (4.4)
FairMoney is a digital bank with a focus on lending. The company provides instant loans of up to one million naira, as well as a bank account and a debit card. According to the company, FairMoney processes over 10,000 loans every day, with one loan paid out every eight seconds.
This is reflected in the fintech app in the Play Store as it passed 5 million downloads as of April. For the 471,180 users who had rated the app, 4.4 out of 5 were deemed appropriate for their experience.
Palmpay (4.5)
The Palmpay fintech app was first released in September 2018, according to information on Google Play. But a pilot phase was launched in July 2019 after the company secured a mobile money operator license from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). It officially became available to Nigerian users in November 2019.
Clearly one of the most downloaded fintech apps at over 5 million, Palmpay is also highly rated by users as it scored 4.5 out of 5. However, the app has fewer reviews compared to Opay. Google Play shows that 222,289 users had reviewed the app this month.
Opay (4.5)
Opera’s Africa fintech startup OPay, launched its mobile money platform in Lagos in 2018 due to the popularity of the internet search engine in Africa. OPay’s mobile money service gives users the ability to pay for utilities, make P2P transfers and also save. The company also offers an offline banking service where users who do not have smartphones can still carry out transactions.
As of April 30, 2022, the fintech app had passed 10 million downloads. Based on 227,416 user reviews, the app was rated 4.5, one of the highest ratings for any app in its category.
