Tanzanian FinTech Launches Personal Finance App

Mipango Fintech has launched a new app that will provide free personal financial management to Tanzanians on IOS and Android mobile devices.

The app – which is underpinned by AI and operates in Swahili – aims to support Tanzanians to better manage their expenses, provide an opportunity to set up budgets, view, analyze expenses and track personal finances.

“Financial literacy is a key gap in the growth and development of this market. Over 50% of Tanzanian adults do not keep track of their expenditures and have no financial goals. This factor leads many citizens to engage in bad debt practices which in turn leads many people into abject poverty,” says Lilian Makoi, co-founder of Mipango Fintech.

“We see the launch of this application as an opportunity to change the way our citizens run their everyday lives and better their relationship with money. The app will help the consumer to receive free financial advice, track their various income, track all their expenses on the go, manage their loans and debts and also gain access to relevant investment opportunities,” adds Makoi.

Makoi says that the company expects to have more than 1 million downloads within the first twelve months.

“2017 research by Financial sector deepening sector cites that there are over 27 million active users of mobile phones in Tanzania that make 66 % and 48.7% of those are users that have access to smartphones. 43% of the active users that make 9 million Tanzanians are income earners. This goes a long way to assure us that the launch of this new app will be beneficial to many citizens of this country.”

The study further cites that in the last twelve months, 43% of Tanzanians save their money at home, via mobile money or with a bank or family member.

“This launch has three features, create your financial profile, set up your monthly budgets and record your daily to monthly expenses which will be tracked against your budgets. With such data, you should be more in control of your finances than ever,” says Mipango Fintech co-founder, Chris Rabi.

The app is set to launch in several other countries in East Africa in their local languages.