How Technology Has Caught Up with Money Market Funds

Money market funds are thought to be the most convenient unit trust investments for the general public for many reasons.

To start with, they offer competitive interest rates, especially when compared to what you stand to earn from a savings or current account. Furthermore, the initial investment is affordable. Some require an initial investment of as little as 1,000 shillings, making joining a money market fund affordable for most Kenyans.

Digitization of the sector has enhanced fund managers’ ability to provide even more value to their customers, and none embodies this more than the Cytonn Money Market Fund (CMMF), which is currently the highest yielding money market fund in the country.

CMMF has made use of technology to eliminate some of the hang-ups that came with investing the traditional way. Investing in a digitized money market fund such as CMMF gives you the greatest value.

To begin with, creating an account used to be a tedious process, involving hours of paperwork, having to attach a host of other documents, waiting for them to be processed and then wait for your account to be created.

It could take days. The Internet shortened the process considerably, and most fund managers will now let you download a registration form on their website and attach the supporting documents as well.

But wait a minute! Doesn’t everyone have a website nowadays? Well, Cytonn has taken it a step further, allowing you to sign up in just a few minutes, and across multiple platforms.

You can choose between dialing *809#, downloading the Cytonn app from your Appstore or from the website, deposit the funds, and you will be a registered investor in fewer than five minutes.

One other feature of the Cytonn MMF is that withdrawals are instant. Before, investors had to wait a few days, usually 2, in order to access their investment.

This made it inconvenient, especially in case of an emergency. With CMMF, however, requests are processed instantly.

The same also applies for deposits. Since your account is credited immediately, it starts to earn your interest much faster. Considering you are able to move cash seamlessly between your CMMF account and mobile wallet, it means you have an easily accessible place to store your cash until you need to use it.

The best part is, you earn interest. For the past year, CMMF has given its clients an average yield of 11 percent, the highest rate in the country.

On top of this, CMMF has a cool bill payment option. Imagine being able to pay your utilities: internet, electricity, water, and many more right from your money market fund account. You don’t have to move funds from your CMMF account to a mobile wallet. You can easily redeem CMMF units to pay all these bills – you can even buy airtime directly from CMMF.

The ease of signing up, depositing and withdrawing, and multiplicity of channels make investing in money market funds so much more convenient. That, plus the opportunity to earn interest without requiring too much starting capital means that digitized MMFs are perfect for all types of investors. If you don’t have an account yet, what are you waiting for?