16 Jun 20
News

Uber launches digital wallet in Africa

Uber is launching its digital wallet feature Uber Cash in Africa. It is doing so in collaboration with Flutterwave, a Nigerian-founded payments gateway that is available across the continent.

This will enable Uber riders to top up their Uber wallet with different third-party payment methods per country: the Verve Card in Nigeria, M-Pesa in Kenya, EFT in South Africa, and so on. (Uber Cash is also going online in Ghana, Ivory Coast, Uganda, Kenya and Tanzania).

Uber Cash will also accept transfers from Flutterwave’s own payment app called Barter, which was launched last year in collaboration with Visa.

Africa has one of the world’s largest unbanked populations, so Uber will continue to accept cash (which it doesn’t in most other markets). But the continent is also a pioneer in mobile payments. By making it easier to pay for rides, Uber Cash could provide a significant boost to Uber’s business in Africa.

Image: Shutterstock

Authored by: Frank Jacobs