ZIMBABWE: EcoCash targets diaspora community with new ‘Home Wallet’ mobile app feature

EcoCash, the leading mobile money platform in Zimbabwe, has introduced ‘EcoCash Home Wallet’, an innovative new feature embedded on its new mobile application. The service is designed to enable Zimbabweans living abroad to conveniently transact on EcoCash – fromwherever they are – and be able to make payments to any outlets that accept EcoCash in Zimbabwe. These include paying ZESA bills, paying schools fees, paying insurance premiums, settling hospitals bills, sending money and buying airtime for their friends and family back home.

EcoCash Managing Director Munyaradzi Nhamo highlighted the importance of EcoCash Home Wallet Services in bridging the transactional gap between the diaspora and locals in Zimbabwe. “The service is convenient, reliable and accessible to all customers through our app, giving users and breadwinners direct control over how they use their money in supporting those back home,” he said at the launch event of the service in the United Kingdom at the annual Zimbabwean music, food and family festival (Zimfest) at the weekend.

“We are committed to continuously innovate and provide the best possible experience. This new feature will give Zimbabweans from around the world access to convenient transactions for goods and services back home,” Nhamo said. He said to register for the service, one needs to download the new EcoCash Mobile Application from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store from wherever they are in the world. “Registration requires providing a foreign mobile number, email address, and other personal information,” he said.

“Once registered, customers can fund their EcoCash Home Wallet through integrated remittance services, conduct real-time money transfers globally via push payment networks, and receive money from other users on the platform.” Nhamo stressed EcoCash’s dedication to customer satisfaction and convenience. “We are working tirelessly to be customer-centric and afford out customers the convenience they deserve,” he added. It is estimated that around three million Zimbabweans live in the diaspora, regularly sending money back home to support their families. Research has shown that international remittances from Zimbabweans abroad and international organizations play a crucial role in providing liquidity to Zimbabwe’s economy,
significantly benefiting livelihoods across the nation.

Statistics from the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe highlight the growing importance of these remittances. Diaspora remittances through official channels registered a remarkable 16 percent increase last year, rising to US$1.873 billion from US$1.617 billion received during the same period in 2022. The introduction of the EcoCash Home Wallet Services comes shortly after EcoCash launched a new mobile app, featuring enhanced security and a vastly improved, intuitive user interface.

SOURCE: DAILYNEWS