Kuda, a neobank startup in Nigeria, has successfully raised $25 million more from Valar Ventures and others to become the neobank for ‘every African on the planet.’ With its Series A round led by Valar Ventures, Kuda brings its total fundraising to over $33 million. The additional funding is meant to support growth and development of the company’s offerings.
Kuda offers an extensive set of features that makes it possible for customers to manage all their financial transactions hassle-free. It provides access to multiple banks in Africa, along with a range of payment services that can be managed from your online account or with the Kuda App. From managing money transfers, deposits and withdrawals to making major investments such as stock trading and savings plans, Kuda’s neobanking solutions are designed to bring seamless convenience to customers regardless of location.
What is Neobanking?
Neobanking is a new form of banking, enabled by technology, that seeks to provide financial services in a faster, more transparent and cost-effective manner than traditional banking. A neobank is an online-only bank with fewer physical branches than traditional banks and no need for physical infrastructure or a large staff. Neobanking services are typically provided through mobile apps and offer access to accounts, deposits, loans, money transfers and other financial services digitally.
Neobanks offer a variety of features that can help customers manage their money more effectively by providing a streamlined customer experience which increases customer convenience and eliminates long wait times. Examples of features offered by neobanks include:
-24/7 access: Allowing customers to access their account from anywhere at any time -Zero fees: Offering cross border payments without the associated fees. -High yields: Providing savings accounts with high yields for savings/investments -No minimum balance requirements: Making it easy for everyone to open an account without worrying about high minimum balance requirements -Advanced budgeting tools: Enabling customers to easily set budgets and track spending in order to manage their finances better -Secure transfers: Allowing customers to make secure cross border payments without fear of fraud or identity theft.
Kuda is an African neobank providing traditional banking services with advanced digital features. Kuda recently raised $25M more led by investor Valar Ventures with the aim of becoming the “neobank for every African on the planet”. Some features Kuda provides which set it apart from traditional banks in Africa include free international money transfers via WhatsApp, chatbot support which allows users to resolve queries quickly within minutes and instant access accounts with zero monthly recurring fees or minimum account balances making it accessible for everyone regardless of income level.
Kuda’s Features
Kuda is an African neobank, designed to make financial services accessible and affordable to everyone in the continent. It has some excellent features that make it the ideal choice for anyone looking to manage their finances.
Let’s take a look at what Kuda has to offer.
Zero Fees
Kuda is a digital, mobile-first financial services provider that offers zero fees for every transaction. Kuda allows users to save, invest, and access loans without charging any additional processing fees or transactional fees on their transfers. All transfers are made instantly without requiring that the user provide proof of residency or identity. Furthermore, customers can open accounts and make transfers in less than five minutes using their Kuda app or website.
Kuda also provides several features to help users manage their money effectively, including automated budgeting and zero-interest expense tracking with categorization of expenditure into periodic summaries that are easy to understand. Additionally, real-time notifications are sent whenever funds are received or transferred so users can stay on top of their finances anytime.
In addition to these features, Kuda also offers data protection mechanisms such as strong passwords, two-factor authentication, bank-level encryption techniques and other security protocols to keep customers’ data safe from malicious actors. With all these features combined together, Kuda makes it possible for customers on the continent to access credible financial services with no extra cost involved.
Instant Payments
Kuda’s instant payments feature is designed to make sending and receiving money a breeze. Using this feature, users can send money to fellow Kuda members or non-members without the hassle of waiting for traditional transfer services. This service is particularly useful for those who need to transfer funds quickly, such as entrepreneurs and freelancers who are paid on a per-project basis and can’t wait days for their payment to be received.
With Kuda’s instant payments, users in Nigeria can also receive money from friends and family abroad using the international payment systems supported by the platform. They can also deposit naira into their account without having to wait days for it to arrive. The ease with which money can be transferred through Kuda makes it the ideal platform for entrepreneurs, freelancers, and others looking for quick and easy ways of moving funds around the country or across borders.
Multi-Currency Support
Kuda is a neobank designed to make managing money easier for customers in Africa. It offers a host of features, including multi-currency support, enabled through an innovative use of technology and partnerships with banks.
Kuda’s multi-currency support allows customers to store and manage their money in multiple currencies, simultaneously taking advantage of foreign exchange markets. This increases financial inclusion by giving customers the ability to send and receive payments from anywhere around the world without worrying about two different exchange rates.
Kuda also leverages its technology platform to ensure customers get the best exchange rates available by connecting them directly with foreign currency providers. This saves customers time, as they don’t need to look up currency exchange rates themselves or visit specific retailers or bank branches. It also ensures they are not subject to fees or charges that come with traditional bank transfers or cash withdrawals from Bureau de Change services.
Finally, customers can access their funds in multiple currencies anytime, from a single app installed on their mobile device, allowing for efficient and secure transactions in any part of the world. This kind of convenience opens up possibilities for travel-related activities such as sightseeing or shopping trips across borders. All this makes Kuda an attractive proposition for African citizens who wish to gain access to financial services and use their money more easily across different countries.
Savings and Investment
Kuda provides great savings and investment options for its customers. It offers a wide range of features such as its high-interest savings account, Kuda Core. This account earns up to 10% per annum and there are no minimum balance requirements to open or maintain an account.
The company also provides a Kuda Savings Wallet where funds can be easily transferred from the main current or savings accounts into higher interest yielding investments like bonds and stocks. It is also possible to diversify one’s savings portfolio by investing in fractional shares of companies like Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft.
Additionally, Kuda provides access to financial services such as loans and mutual funds in partnership with reputable providers. These services are designed to help customers reach their financial goals by making the most out of their hard-earned money invested with the firm.
Kuda raises $25M more led by Valar to become the neobank for ‘every African on the planet’
Kuda offers a selection of credit and loan products for both individuals and businesses. This includes personal loans with flexible repayment terms, credit cards and lines of credit. Kuda also offers business loans to small businesses and startups. These products offer a fast, convenient way to get the funding you need without having to go through the hassle of applying for a traditional loan.
With Kuda Credit, customers can easily apply for a line of credit with no paperwork, no collateral and no minimum income requirements. Customers can access their funds whenever they need it with just a few clicks. The application takes just minutes to complete, with no collateral or paperwork required.
For businesses, Kuda Business Loans have competitive interest rates starting at 3%, flexible repayment terms as short as 3 months and no origination fees or transaction fees. With quick approval times and mobile-friendly platform to apply on, Kuda is making it easy for African entrepreneurs to access capital quickly in order to grow their businesses online.
Real-time Notifications
Real-time notifications are a key feature of Kuda’s neobank that allows customers to track their transactions in real time and be alerted when there is an incoming or outgoing transaction. This helps customers stay on top of their accounts and ensures that no money goes unaccounted for.
Kuda also offers an optional SMS update feature so customers can keep tabs on their funds without needing an internet connection. Notifications can be set up for deposits, withdrawals, payments, transfers, merchant transactions and more, ensuring that you are always aware of what’s happening with your account at any given time.
Additionally, each notification comes with detailed information such as the date and time of the transaction, the amount involved and additional details such as payment details if it was a merchant transaction or transfer notes in case it was a wire transfer.
With this data at your fingertips, you can easily track your purchases or keep tabs on unexpected charges to ensure safe banking practices.
Kuda’s Security Features
Kuda is revolutionising the banking landscape with their neobank and its advanced security features. The company, which recently raised $25M more led by Valar, is taking a comprehensive approach to security that includes encryption, authorization, authentication and other forms of protections.
In this article, we will be exploring Kuda’s security features in depth.
Data Encryption
Kuda takes data security very seriously and takes necessary measures to ensure the personal user data remain secure. All sensitive information is always stored in encrypted format and transmitted over a secure connection. To provide the highest level of security, Kuda makes use of industry-standard 256-bit encryption technology that protects users’ data both in transit and at rest. The strong encryption ensures that there is no risk of third party access or interception when dealing with customer information.
Furthermore, Kuda follows best practices for its firewalls ensuring maximum safety for all users’ details. Through this secure framework, customer information cannot be accessed by any external sources or hackers, enabling customers to store their data securely in Kuda’s system without any fear or worry.
Multi-Factor Authentication
Kuda offers advanced user authentication to help ensure the safety of customer accounts. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is an extra security feature that requires users to authenticate their identity multiple times when they want to access protected data or applications.
Kuda’s MFA feature requires customers to complete at least two independent actions in addition to using a password, such as entering a one-time passcode or providing biometric data like fingerprints. This additional layer of security helps reduce theft and fraudulent activities by requiring customer authorization multiple times. It also makes it more difficult for unauthorized actors to gain access.
In addition, Kuda provides customers with additional protection when enrolling in online banking and shopping by offering secure digital wallets and payment systems. Secure digital wallets are secure solutions that store card information safely and allow customers to make payments without having to physically present their cards. This prevents the unauthorized disclosure of any sensitive payment information since customers do not need to enter personal details such as PINs or CVV codes when using third-party services such as PayPal or Apple Pay. Also, all customer transactions are monitored for suspicious activity with 24/7 fraud prevention services provided by Kuda’s partners.
Fraud Detection
Kuda’s fraud detection system helps it protect its customers from identity theft and potential fraudulent activities. This protection is made possible by employing a variety of data security measures including multilevel authentication, two-factor authentication, and risk scoring.
Kuda’s authentication and fraud detection processes start with the personal information provided during the initial registration process and are then further analyzed as the customer’s account is used to verify their identity and any related transactions. Kuda also incorporates third party data and machine learning algorithms to detect anomalous user activity that may indicate suspicious behavior.
In addition, Kuda maintains an extensive list of blocked countries, states, city codes and IP addresses to further limit fraudulent access. They also can detect blocked terminals or other breached devices used in online shopping transactions helping to ensure that customers do not fall victim of identity theft or other criminal acts occurring over the Internet.