Building and construction is a tricky business, mostly because contracts in this sector are usually post-paid. This means that one has to primarily foot the bill for construction materials and wages. At the end of the day, many construction companies incur high-interest loans that conversely affect their profits.
James Andrew Mukuye was going through this predicament in his company J.A Living Spaces until he learned about Zofi Cash in November 2021 which has since saved him from workers’ salary advances.
Zofi Cash is an early wage access platform that enables employees to access their wages before payday or whenever emergencies strike and cannot wait.
Mukuye says this platform has worked miracles for his employees and now he doesn’t have to sweat about financing salary advances anymore.
“I would recommend Zofi Cash to all employers interested in the well-being of their employees and staff because it simplifies their life during the month. This improves their welfare and translates into better productivity,” he says.
According to, Joel Nabimanya, the Growth and Marketing Lead at Zofi Cash, this product, which is purely digital should be on every employer’s radar.
“The market problem that we are addressing is access to finances for people working in the corporate space. People get paid and within a week or two, their money is depleted and they are back to zero,” he says.
“Instead of running to money lenders and loan sharks who require collateral security and take days to process, we would rather have them access their wages earlier.”
On the employer’s side, they are required to sign up, enter a memorandum of understanding with Zofi Cash and provide a trading license, certificate of incorporation, and logo. At this stage, the employer can then approve/recommend an employee to get an advance and Zofi Cash will send it straight to the mobile wallet of the respective employee.
Nabimanya argues that one of the reasons why economies in the US and Europe have developed is because employees have access to their money much earlier. Some clock out and get paid on that very day while others get paid weekly, or every two weeks.
“This helps a lot for money to circulate in the economy. We came to break that 30-day pay cycle and bridge the gap between the paycheck and how often you can access it in the month,” he adds.
Nabimanya says that this service has received quick adoption because it touches the core of every employee. In the first year of operation, Zofi Cash transacted and processed more than Shs 1bn in advance loans. “This year, we have reached a billion shillings in a space of five months. We are growing at a rate of 24.6 percent every single quarter,” he says.
The company has so far served more than 20,000 employees.
“Our clientele ranges from multi-national manufacturers like Regal Paints to marketing agencies like Zeus – The Agency and now beginning to partner with companies like Safe Boda and Rocket Health, among others. We also serve several startups and personal businesses,” he says.
40 Days 40 FinTechs
Nabimanya notes that one of the key challenges Financial Technology companies face in Uganda is adoption, brought about by limited saturation of smartphones and internet connectivity especially among people at the bottom of the pyramid.
He is however happy with the 40 Days 40 FinTechs program that is bringing together all players in the FinTech landscape in East Africa as well as empowering startups.
“When Zofi Cash knows that another startup is doing something that helps it grow, there will be space for collaboration. Startups can now generate more revenue from different sources. While building that synergy, you will be able to end the problems faced in the FinTech industry,” he says.
Zofi Cash is the 8th participant in Season Four of the 40 Days 40 FinTechs initiative that seeks to highlight the impact stories of emerging FinTechs in the East African region.
According to HiPipo CEO Innocent Kawooya, the East African region has very many start-up FinTechs that are changing the lives of under-served communities.
“We want to show and tell these stories that are changing communities and economies. Convenient financial literacy and independence on the part of end-users is one of the ways we can realise an inclusive society,” he said.
The 40 Days 40 FinTechs initiative is run by HiPipo in partnership with the Level One Project, Mojaloop Foundation, INFITX, Cyberplc Academy, Ideation Corner, and Crosslake Technologies with support from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Life-changing stories from more than 100 FinTechs have been highlighted by this initiative in the past three years.
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