Mobile lending has become a very popular practice in Kenya. Its growing popularity and easy accessibility, has led to a boom in the number of mobile loan services available in the country, as a direct response to the ever growing demand present here.
One of such mobile loan services available in Kenya, is Ubapesa and in this season of Love i.e Valentine’s, this information might just come in handy. Especially with the D Day being today. That means you have a just a couple of hours left to get everything ready maybe?
Ubapesa (via its mobile app) is more like a mobile ‘money market’ for its users. This is because here the lenders and borrowers (or ‘sellers and buyers’), interact with each other.
The Ubapesa app is owned and developed by Ubapesa Limited, a technology firm which is based in Nairobi, Kenya.
What You Should Know About Ubapesa
Below are certain things you should know about Ubapesa i.e, the features as well as the requirements for your loan application:
- Ubapesa via its app, helps lenders earn a profit, while giving borrowers access to loans for their various needs.
- Upon your registration with Ubapesa, you become both a borrow and lender. All you need to do is specify your specific need whenever you’re using the app i.e if you want to get a loan (borrow) or if you would like to give a loan (lend).
- You must be residing in Kenya in order to use any of Ubapesa’s services.
- You must have an android smartphone or tablet in order to download and use the Ubapesa app.
- All Ubapesa loans are repayable within 10 days and at an interest rate of 9 percent, 20 days at an interest rate of 10 percent or 30 days at an interest rate of 13 percent.
- All Ubapesa loans are received within minutes of approval directly into your M-Pesa mobile money wallet.
- You will need to add funds to your Ubapesa account directly, before you would be able to give loans i.e lend money.
- For every loan you give, you earn up to 42.5 percent of the facilitation fee (which is basically the interest). The remaining 57.5 percent goes to Ubapesa and caters for settling any platform charges, as well as insurance and withholding fees.
- As a lender you do not need to contact the person you are giving the loan to directly as Ubapesa does that for you at no extra cost.
- Ubapesa provides a guarantee for Lenders that ensures that they get their money back in 60 after the loan due date if the borrower is unable to pay.
How To Use The Ubapesa App
To use the Ubapesa mobile app, simply:
- Go to Google Play Store on your android device and search for ‘Ubapesa’. Alternatively, you can download the Ubapesa Mobile app via this link: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.ubapesa.app
- As soon as you are done downloading the Ubapesa application on your android mobile device (smartphone or tablet), proceed to install and launch the application.
- Next, proceed to create your Ubapesa account.
- Once your Ubapesa account has been successfully created, proceed to check your credit score.
- After that, check your loan limit.
- Next, go to the money market available on the Ubapesa app.
- Once there, you can now begin making transactions.
How To Repay Your Ubapesa Loan Via The Ubapesa Mobile App
To repay your Ubapesa loan via the Ubapesa mobile app, simply use the following steps:
- Launch the Ubapesa mobile app.
- Once opened, select the ‘Repay Loan’ option.
- Next select M-Pesa as your repayment method.
- Type in the amount that you would like to repay.
- Enter your unique M-Pesa pin.
- Once done, select ‘OK’.
How To Repay Your Ubapesa Loan Via M-Pesa Paybill
To repay your Ubapesa loan via M-Pesa Paybill, simply use the following steps:
- Go to your M-Pesa via your Safaricom SIM Toolkit.
- Once there, select the ‘Lipa na Mpesa’ option on the menu.
- Next, select the ‘Paybill’ option.
- In the field labelled as ‘Paybill Number’, type in 144966. This is the official Paybill number for Ubapesa.
- Next, in the field labelled as ‘Account Number’, type in your M-Pesa phone number. Please make sure that is the exact same M-Pesa number that you registered with Ubapesa.
- Once done, type in the loan amount that you would like to repay.
- Type in your unique M-Pesa pin.
- Again, please make sure that all the details you provided are accurate, especially the Paybill Number and of course your phone number. After making sure the details are correct, proceed to submit your payment by selecting ‘Ok’.
Now go back to Ubapesa app and select repay loan to make it refresh and update your account.
Remember that All Ubapesa loans are repayable within 10 days and at an interest rate of 9 percent, 20 days at an interest rate of 10 percent or 30 days at an interest rate of 13 percent.
How To Add Funds To Your Ubapesa Account Via The Ubapesa Mobile App
As stated earlier you will need to add funds directly to your Ubapesa app before being able to give out loans.
To add funds to your Ubapesa account via the Ubapesa mobile app, simply use the following steps:
- Launch the Ubapesa mobile app.
- Once opened, select the ‘Add Funds to UbaAccount’ option.
- Next type in the amount that you would like to repay.
You are good to go.
How To Add Funds To Your Ubapesa Account Via M-Pesa Paybill
To add funds to your Ubapesa account via M-Pesa Paybill, simply use the following steps:
- Go to your M-Pesa via your Safaricom SIM Toolkit.
- Once there, select the ‘Lipa na Mpesa’ option on the menu.
- Next, select the ‘Paybill’ option.
- In the field labelled as ‘Paybill Number’, type in 144966. This is the official Paybill number for Ubapesa.
- Next, in the field labelled as ‘Account Number’, type in your M-Pesa phone number. As is the case when repaying loans, your Ubapesa account number is the M-Pesa phone number that you registered with Ubapesa.
- Once done, type in the amount you wish to add to your Ubapesa account.
- Type in your unique M-Pesa pin.
- Again, please make sure that all the details you provided are accurate, especially the Paybill Number and of course your phone number. After making sure the details are correct, proceed to submit your payment by selecting ‘Ok’.
How To Give A Loan Via Ubapesa
To give a loan via Ubapesa, simply:
- Allow Ubapesa match your requirements with a suitable borrower. This will be done automatically immediately after you provide the amount, as well as your credit score and duration of the loan.
- Alternatively, you can choose your preferred borrower manually regardless of your set conditions. To do this, select from the list of borrowers available in the money market.
As a lender you can also decide to either choose to do Single Lending (which means that you lend to a single borrower and wait until they repay) or Multi Lending (where you can continue giving loans until the principal is exhausted).
Please keep in mind that the maximum amount that you can give out as a loan, is 140,000 Kenyan Shillings. If you would like to give a loan with an amount that is higher than the maximum, you will need to contact Ubapesa.
How To Withdraw Your Earnings On Ubapesa
If you are a Lender and would like to withdraw your earnings from Ubapesa, simply:
- Launch the Ubapesa app.
- Go to your Ubapesa account.
- Once there, select ‘Withdraw from Ubapesa Account’.
- Next, type in the amount.
- Type in your unique Ubapesa pin. You will receive the money into your Mpesa number which you registered with on Ubapesa platform.
How To Contact Ubapesa’s Customer Care Service Team
If you are in need of further assistance from Ubapesa, please feel free to reach out to the loan provider’s customer care via the following channels:
Their official phone number: +254 709693000
Their official email address: info@ubapesa.com
Their Offices which are located at Golf View Office Suites in Muthaiga on 2 ambui Road, off Thika Road. 4th Floor Office No A4.
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