• Log in
  • Sign up
  •  
  • About
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Rainmakers
  • 88mph Garage Nairobi
 
HumanIPOHome to African Tech
    
  • News
  • Activity
  • Startups
  • People
  • Investors

Follow African Tech scene

You have successfully subscribed!

Notify me!

Featured news

OPINION: Is Apple looking to cash in on SA textbook shortage?Odinga to use AR apps for election campaign

In partnership with:

Most read

  • Safaricom launches paperless, no collateral credit service MShwari

    November 27, 2012

  • Kenyan media network launches road traffic management app

    November 27, 2012

  • Highlights from Mobile Marketing Africa Focus Day at Mobile Web in Africa 2012

    November 28, 2012

  • Mobile money transfers in Kenya close to country’s national budget

    November 27, 2012

  • Kenyans on Twitter mobilise car pooling in the wake of transport hitch

    November 30, 2012

  • thumbzup for Absa's "world-first" payment device

    November 29, 2012

Latest by country

Kenya

  • The HumanIPO Debate: Should CCK continue implementing the reduced MTR rates?

    November 30, 2012

  • Is the ATM’s death due to mobile money?

    November 30, 2012

South Africa

  • Online access to Cape Town’s planning projects launched

    November 30, 2012

  • South Africa’s first legal streaming service surpasses 20 million tracks

    November 30, 2012

Nigeria

  • Shanduka Group acquires stake in MTN Nigeria

    November 30, 2012

  • Gamsole ready to take African gaming global

    November 29, 2012

Follow us!

HumanIPO Twitter feed

Follow entrepreneurs, investors and tech enthusiasts!

Join today!

Latest by category

Startups

  • Johannesburg accelerator chief urges venture capitalists to be more visible

    November 30, 2012

  • Cameroon farmers’ mobile app set to send vital information to thousands

    November 30, 2012

Mobile

  • Nashua and Cell C call for a reduction of termination rates

    November 30, 2012

  • Cameroon farmers’ mobile app set to send vital information to thousands

    November 30, 2012

Internet

  • Online access to Cape Town’s planning projects launched

    November 30, 2012

  • South Africa’s first legal streaming service surpasses 20 million tracks

    November 30, 2012

Telecoms

  • The HumanIPO Debate: Should CCK continue implementing the reduced MTR rates?

    November 30, 2012

  • Is the ATM’s death due to mobile money?

    November 30, 2012

Features

  • The HumanIPO Debate: Should CCK continue implementing the reduced MTR rates?

    November 30, 2012

  • Is the ATM’s death due to mobile money?

    November 30, 2012

Events

  • African Digital journalist projects get US$1M funding

    November 29, 2012

  • GrowthAfrica, Village Capital launch accelerator pitch fest in Nairobi

    November 29, 2012

Social Media

  • South Africa’s first legal streaming service surpasses 20 million tracks

    November 30, 2012

  • Harnessing the benefits of ad targeting for political gains

    November 30, 2012

Gadgets

  • Cosatu is warned by government over planned e-toll protest

    November 30, 2012

  • Microsoft to charge businesses more for services via multiple devices

    November 29, 2012

May 23, 2012 · by Sam Wakoba

GLOBA SMS money transfer to service Africa’s unbanked population

Share Tweet
Started just five years ago in SA as a small company, Globa, now an international money transfer and mobile payment platform, continues to grow rapidly changing every stone unturned in the money transfer sector. The firm is now looking to go global after taking over the whole of Africa first.



Initially developed to provide the unbanked community with a means of making payments, sending and receiving money without the need to get a bank account,GLOBA is currently in negotiations with a bank in Kenya and is already operating in Ghana, SA and Namibia. It also has offices in Salt Lake City, Utah.

Johan Meyer, one of the founders told HumanIPO firms can use Globa to pay staff as they wouldn’t need a bank account to get their money plus you don’t need to carry the risk to do cash payments weekly or bi-weekly.

Globa recently integrated the Zunguz money transfer on Facebook allowing social enthusiasts to send gifts on the social site without exchange of bank details to foster security.

“We are the wallet system behind ZunguZ. Globa is the Zunguz processing engine and wallet, we provide our users with the ability to send, receive, ask, withdraw money via SMS, WAP or the Internet. But because of the fact that most of our users don’t have smart phones or access to the internet we found that our SMS solution is the most popular solution.

“We started Globa to provide our clients with the ability to transfer money between the USA and Mexico but because both of us are from Africa we wanted the product in Africa as well. At the end, it turned out that the African market was much bigger than we ever expected.” Meyer said.

The firm is currently doing bulk payments for its more than 7000 individual vendor users to up to 2000 in a single transaction apart from the companies using Globa as a processing engine and wallet, like Zunguz.

Johan told HumanIPO that GLOBA offers an extensive list of vendor tools developed to give vendors the ability to integrate GLOBA into their online and mobile products and thus enabling any developer or vendor to turn his mobile phone into a mobile storefront.

Apart from using SMS options Meyer says their recently launched USSD solution is also picking up. The firm also has agents but mostly in the USA and Mexico and in South Africa.

Meyer says that with over R12-billion still unbanked in South Africa, according to the Banking Association of SA, cash is still a vital form of exchange. And 2.5 billion adults, just over half of world’s adult population, do not use formal financial services to save or borrow,  2.2 billion of these are underserved adults  live in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.


The service is also a first for South Africa’s more than 70 percent population who are  active mobile phone users. South Africa expects to have more than 50 million people by the end of this year.

Meyer says the majority of Service Providers employ a huge percentage of the unbanked population in South Africa. He adds that there are strict legislations associated with opening a bank account in the country of which the major implication is proof of address.

Majority of these employers have more than 500 employees, individuals working for them and 85 percent of these employers are thus forced to withdraw cash from banks and ATMS to enable them to pay the wages due every Friday.


Johan Meyer and  Kenny Andam founded  Globa in 2007.

Share Tweet

FB comments

Latest news

  • image
    17 hr 20 min ago

    Online access to Cape Town’s planning projects launched

    A new website launched by the City of Cape Town is aiming to give easier access to all planning and building information.

  • image
    17 hr 59 min ago

    South Africa’s first legal streaming service surpasses 20 million tracks

    Simfy, South Africa’s first legal music streaming service, now has more than 20 million songs on its database.

  • image
    18 hr 35 min ago

    Johannesburg accelerator chief urges venture capitalists to be more visible

    Better education for young innovators and venture capitalists marketing themselves more effectively are the keys to awakening the (more)

  • image
    19 hr 47 min ago

    Nashua and Cell C call for a reduction of termination rates

    Nashua and Cell C agree wholesale mobile termination rates should be reduced in order to promote competition.

  • image
    20 hr 4 min ago

    Datatec acquires Comztek for US$10 million

    ICT solutions group Datatec has announced the acquisition of leading hardware and software distributor Comztek Holdings, in a deal valued (more)

  • image
    20 hr 14 min ago

    Harnessing the benefits of ad targeting for political gains

    Online advertising has become an authoritative auxiliary to TV commercials. Although the lion’s share of political advertising finances (more)

  • image
    20 hr 53 min ago

    The HumanIPO Debate: Should CCK continue implementing the reduced MTR rates?

    The Communications Commission of Kenya (CCK) has finally announced a cut in mobile termination rates (MTR), ending months of uncertainty (more)

  • image
    21 hr 10 min ago

    Is the ATM’s death due to mobile money?

    The African financial system has undergone a period of substantial change, the impact of which continues to transform the way financial (more)

  • image
    21 hr 17 min ago

    Local ownership requirement waived for Airtel Kenya

    Airtel Kenya has received an unlimited waiver to the 20 percent local ownership requirement, as the Kenyan government acknowledges the (more)

  • image
    21 hr 47 min ago

    OPINION: Transport problems call for telecommuting solutions in business

    The public transport problems being experienced in Kenya are likely to cost the economy billions of shillings, as most employees remain at (more)

  • image
    21 hr 49 min ago

    Cameroon farmers’ mobile app set to send vital information to thousands

    A farmer’s son has developed SMS technology inspired by TweetDeck in partnership with Cameroonian agriculture agencies to efficiently (more)

  • image
    22 hr 27 min ago

    MTN SA go commercial with their LTE offering

    MTN South Africa has gone live with the commercial availability of LTE (Long Term Evolution) in Johannesburg, Pretoria and Durban, with no (more)

  • image
    23 hr 31 min ago

    Shanduka Group acquires stake in MTN Nigeria

    South African Black Economic Empowerment (BEE) group the Shanduka Group has acquired a minority stake in MTN Nigeria in a deal worth US$355 (more)

  • image
    1 day ago

    Cosatu is warned by government over planned e-toll protest

    The South African government has warned any protester caught vandalising property today (Friday) they will face criminal conviction, as the (more)

  • image
    1 day ago

    Mobile phone penetration to surpass 80 percent in Q1 of 2013

    Africa’s mobile penetration will jump to above 80 percent from the current 54 percent by early next year, aided by cheaper call and (more)

  • image
    1 day ago

    Mobile phones and social media crucial to travel experience, says study

    88 percent of people take a mobile device capable of 3G or Wi-Fi connectivity on holiday with them, with the same percentage under the age (more)

  • image
    1 day ago

    Kenyans on Twitter mobilise car pooling in the wake of transport hitch

    Stranded Kenyans are this morning using Twitter to carpool their way to various destinations in the wake of the transport strike across the (more)

  • image
    1 day ago

    Talks begin to bring Start-Up Chile model to South Africa

    The Western Cape Government is “seriously interested” in investing in international start-ups to entice them to base, register and grow (more)

  • 1 day 1 hours ago

    Kenya opposes internet regulation by ITU

    Kenya will not back a proposed changes to the Melbourne Internet rules and economic model by the International Telecommunication Union (more)

  • 1 day 1 hours ago

    Further boost for ZA Central Registry for its .africa bid

    South Africa based ZA Central Registry (ZACR) have received a further boost in the race to win the rights to administer the .africa generic (more)

  • 1 day 3 hours ago

    Online trading platform B&S Media making ground in Kenya

    As e-commerce seeks to gain footing in Africa, Kenyan firm B & S Media seems to be accelerating the process by offering a platform to (more)

  • 1 day 16 hours ago

    ITU hits back at accusations it aims to “restrict” free speech

    United Nations agency the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) has adopted a resolution asking Member States to refrain from taking (more)

  • 1 day 17 hours ago

    Odinga to use AR apps for election campaign

    Kenyan presidential hopeful Raila Odinga is launching an augmented reality (AR) application to further his election campaign, allowing (more)

  • image
    1 day 17 hours ago

    Manyatta Rent geared to change face of Kenya’s real estate industry

    The developers of Manyatta Rent, software enabling real estate agents to receive rent via mobile money transfer services, have vowed to (more)

  • 1 day 17 hours ago

    South African internet users log on mostly for social networking

    Most South African Internet users log on to access social media, with rapid growth in the number of people using their mobile phones for (more)

  • 1 day 19 hours ago

    ICASA reports to Government on digital migration, but still no deadline

    The Independent Communications Authority of South Africa (ICASA) has still not set itself a new target for the switchover from analogue to (more)

  • image
    1 day 19 hours ago

    Gamsole ready to take African gaming global

    Nigerian gaming company Gamsole has become the newest entrant into an industry that is slowly taking shape, with companies such as Maliyo (more)

  • 1 day 19 hours ago

    Microsoft to charge businesses more for services via multiple devices

    A new move by Microsoft means that businesses looking to give their workers access to systems through multiple devices will from December 1 (more)

  • 1 day 20 hours ago

    New DStv recording service with increased capacity to be released

    Digital Satellite Television (DStv) is improving its personal video recorder (PVR) service giving to give subscribers more storage space (more)

  • 1 day 20 hours ago

    The Curious Case of Nyagaka Anyona Ouko, Conclusion - Part IV

    Safaricom’s rejoinder to this HumanIPO series seems to rebuff Ouko’s claims to be the originator of M-Pesa mobile money transfer (more)

  • 1 day 21 hours ago

    3 months after launch, Mdundo closes lucrative deals

    Mdundo.com, the first Kenyan startup to sell local music on scratch cards, has sealed lucrative deals with some of the world’s leading (more)

  • 1 day 21 hours ago

    Safaricom to remain unscathed despite lower MTR

    Barely a week since Kenya’s telecommunications industry regulator lowered the mobile termination rates (MTR), sources from Safaricom (more)

  • image
    1 day 21 hours ago

    thumbzup for Absa's "world-first" payment device

    A world-first payment device for small businesses has been launched by South African bank Absa in Johannesburg today (Thursday).

  • image
    1 day 22 hours ago

    African Digital journalist projects get US$1M funding

    As part of the African News Innovation Challenge (ANIC), 20 digital journalism projects have earned US$1 million funding and technical (more)

  • 1 day 23 hours ago

    Nigerian cybercrime bill passed for second reading

    Nigeria has moved one step closer to passing its cybercrimes bill, as the number of such offences committed continues to rise.

  • 1 day 23 hours ago

    Last chance for African entrepreneurs to win US$100,000 investment backed by UN

    The deadline for applications to a competition led by the United Nations which will award US$150,000 in investment to African entrepreneurs (more)

  • 1 day 23 hours ago

    Microsoft aids SMEs with new initiative

    Microsoft hope to provide support, benefits and tools for small and medium scale businesses (SMEs) in the Middle East and Africa in an (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Safaricom and Britam launch new insurance product via M-Pesa

    Safaricom, Britam and Changamka Health have unveiled Linda Jamii, a new insurance facility that enables low income earners to make (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Microsoft enters growing augmented reality market

    Microsoft has been granted a patent for augmented reality (AR) glasses, joining rivals vying to dominate the emerging AR market.

  • 2 days ago

    Liberia’s Cellcom rewards subscribers with 100 motorbikes, provides protective jumpsuits

    Liberia's National Excellence Award winning telecommunications company, Cellcom, is to give away a motorbike to a customer each day for 100 (more)

  • image
    2 days ago

    OPINION: Is Apple looking to cash in on SA textbook shortage?

    In response to widely publicised textbook shortages across South Africa, the country has seen a surge in private organisations trying to (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Safaricom’s MShwari doesn’t threaten M-pepea's emergency micro-credit facility, founder

    Two developers have created ‘M-pepea,’ an emergency micro credit solution accessible via mobile phones, and insist that they are not (more)

  • image
    2 days ago

    GrowthAfrica, Village Capital launch accelerator pitch fest in Nairobi

    GrowthAfrica, under its chief brands The GrowthHub and Village Capital, will today debut Pitch Fest Day in Kenya’s capital Nairobi, an (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Battle between smartphone giants and their patents resurface

    Nokia has filed lawsuits against Blackberry-maker RIM in three countries as the smartphone patent wars erupt again, with Ericsson having (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Vodacom launches M2M management platform for businesses

    South African telecom Vodacom is launching a new M2M management platform, known as a Global Data Service Platform (GDSP), catering to the (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Online permit system introduced for small and “informal” traders in Cape Town

    The City of Cape Town is attempting to cut the red tape “burden” on small traders by expanding its online permit system.

  • 2 days ago

    SA firm uses QR codes for ‘digital memoralisation’

    A South African startup is integrating Quick Response (QR) code technology into places of remembrance, allowing those with Internet-capable (more)

  • 2 days ago

    E-tolling and highway upgrades at the expense of Gauteng motorists

    South Africa’s High Court has heard “tolling can’t be undone” from a lawyer representing the South African National Roads Agency (more)

  • 2 days ago

    Nashua Mobile and Wireless G’s “uncapped” WiFi capped at 3GB, customers will be “throttled”

    South African mobile users are being offered “uncapped” Wi-Fi access for R39 (US$4.50) a month, but the providers have admitted users (more)

  • image
    2 days ago

    How to have your tweet regularly retweeted

    For Twitter users, having a tweet retweeted several times seems a mark of accomplishment, like having your advice passed along by (more)

  •  Like us on Facebook
  •  Follow on Twitter
  •  Youtube
  • News
  • Startups
  • People
  • Investors
  • News RSS
  • About
  • Entrepreneurs
  • Rainmaker
  • 88mph Garage Nairobi
  • In press
  • Logo & brand
  • Feedback
  • Terms and conditions
  • Privacy policy