Mukuru opens fintech drive-thru in Zimbabwe

South African-based fintech platform Mukuru has launched a drive-thru service for domestic and international money transfers in the Chisipite district in the Zimbabwean city of Harare.

The Chisipite drive-thru is one of the company's new locations in Zimbabwe and follows nine other sites that opened across the region in February this year.

In a statement, the fintech company said the launch is aimed at enhancing its promise of making financial services more accessible to Zimbabweans.

Mukuru is a financial services platform that offers international money transfers in 50 countries and across 300 remittance corridors. The fintech company services clients across digital channels, through different payment methods as well as through a range of engagement platforms.

"Whilst we are realistic about the economic outlook, we strive to enable financial inclusion for Africa's emerging market. Therefore, we continuously shift our focus to innovative ways that make financial services more accessible for the people of Zimbabwe and those in the diaspora," said Mukuru Zimbabwe Director Marc Carrie-Wilson.

Mukuru said its drive-thru launch aims to make financial services more accessible to people across Zimbabwe. (Source: Image by ASphotofamily on Freepik)

Carrie-Wilson added that as the fintech platform increased its footprint in the country it has also been exploring various ways of sourcing locations for its operations.

"Safety remains a top priority for us, and the drive-thru idea proved to be the safest and most convenient option for our customers," the Mukuru Zimbabwe Director continued.

The Chisipite drive-thru is open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. daily including public holidays and comes with a walk-in option for customers who wish to register or visit the location on foot, Carrie-Wilson added.

"Out of the ten new locations, Chisipite is the only drive-thru at the moment, but we hope to launch one in Bulawayo in the next phase," he continued.

Mukuru expands its offerings

Mukuru has launched a series of services in the past few months to build a diverse product offering for customers, such as the recent partnership with Multichoice, which enables its customers to pay their DStv account with Mukuru, and Bereka, which helps to deliver money transfers directly to customers across Zimbabwe.

"We have seen how well these collaborations work in our ongoing partnership with wholesaler Metro Peech&Browne, who make purchasing groceries, stationery and appliances more convenient for people in Zimbabwe who use our platform," he continued.

In October 2022, the fintech company also launched a loyalty-based funeral benefit to its clients in South Africa.

Zim fintech ecosystem

It will be interesting to see how Mukuru's drive-thru concept will impact the Zimbabwean fintech ecosystem.

There has been an uptick of fintech companies expanding into the Southern African country.

In January 2023, South African fintech company Mama Money announced a deal with AFC Commercial Bank in Zimbabwe which allows its customers to send money for cash collection at 45 locations across Zimbabwe.

In February 2023, Zimbabwean mobile money operator EcoCash increased mobile money US dollar transactions on its platform.

EcoCash is a mobile payment solution that enables customers of Zimbabwean telco Econet to complete financial transactions directly from their mobile phones. The platform also allows for the receipt of remittances from abroad through partnerships with traditional money transfer firms as well as through its own remittance channels.

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*Top image is of Mukuru's drive-thru facility. (Source: Mukuru).

— Matshepo Sehloho, Associate Editor, Connecting Africa