Equity Group Launches Finserve to Better Digital Financial Services

Equity Group on Monday launched its fintech subsidiary, Finserve, a technological service signaling a future defined by disruptive innovation beyond the bank’s current financial services.

Finserve will operate as an autonomous commercial enterprise, delivering solutions not just for Equity Group, but to the entire economy.

Finserve is the technological body of Equity Group and is behind products like Equitel, which allows customers using the SIM card to manage their money and make transactions using a mobile phone. The arm has been credited with revolutionizing banking and other financial services through digitization.  

Finserve innovated the digital banking capability of Equity Bank under the brand name Eazzy Banking. The suite of self-service digital tools has redefined mobile banking through the Eazzy Banking App which enables customers to perform over 60 functionalities.

EazzyNet, on the other hand, enables customers to do all their banking on the Internet while EazzyBiz is a cash and liquidity management tool for corporates. Eazzy Chama enables saving groups to manage their group funds online while Eazzy Save is an instant account opening capability.

Through Finserve, Equity group has been on the edge in terms of integration with all major global card associations including American Express, Mastercard, Visa, JCB, Dinners, and Union Pay, becoming the single largest aggregator of card payments in the region.

Speaking during the launch, Equity Group Chief Executive, and Managing Director, Dr. James Mwangi noted that Financial technology (Fintech) will play a critical role in deepening financial inclusion and be democratizing financial service provision.

“Finserve will now be an independent commercial fintech that will provide technology solutions. Thanks to fintech innovations by Finserve, 97 percent of all Equity transactions are now outside the branch. In the spirit of shared prosperity, and having seen the revolutionary impact that fintech capabilities have brought to the Bank, we have taken a deliberate strategy to make Finserve an independent commercial subsidiary that will focus its efforts in delivering solutions to propel the African economy. Equity Group now becomes one of Finserve’s clients for technology solutions,” he said.

According to the group, it has enjoyed rapid growth in merchant banking and payments as well as in the diaspora. Fintech’s new technology aims to redefine the methods of delivery of financial services. It will improve activities in the financing sector as well as enhance the usage of financial services provided by existing financial companies such as banks.

“As a subsidiary of Equity Group, our capabilities have been tried and tested through the innovations and digitization we have delivered for the Group. We stand on the shoulders of the leading financial services provider in the region,” Finserve Managing Director, Jack Ngare said during the launch.

Finserve unveiled two revolutionary fintech solutions, the Jenga Payment Gateway, and Jenga APIs. The Jenga Payment Gateway is a breakthrough innovation created to support businesses in processing payments in the crowded East African payment space that has seen the card, mobile wallet, and fintech players proliferate daily.

Jenga Payment Gateway consolidates all payments to the Jenga platform and presents one integration platform to businesses. To date, Finserve has offered solutions to businesses in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, DRC Congo, Tanzania, Ethiopia and South Sudan.

Jenga Payment Gateway allows cash-out by merchants to any bank in the world and to all mobile wallets in any of the seven countries.

Jenga APIs provide an integrated platform for businesses to send money, buy, pay, manage their accounts, manage credit, withdraw and conduct KYC, CRB, and AML querying.

“You can now use over 64 fintech, regtech, and insuretech APIs to power your business. Currently, Finserve reaches 4 million people daily through its APIs, working with 136 developers and SMEs,” said Ngare.