With the new feature, you can easily transfer money from your SafeBoda Wallet to other bank accounts at very low rates as compared to existing solutions. For example, Airtel Money and MTN Mobile Money rates offer a bank transfer section, but with the SafeBoda Wallet feature, costs have been factored in for the customer to pay the least possible fee.

Well, with he ability to transfer money to any of your mobile money numbers or a bank account of your choice, this makes the SafeBoda wallet a cross-platform transfer and savings platform and here is how you can actually utilize two of its new features.

Transfer Money from your SafeBoda Wallet to Mobile Money

1. Open the SafeBoda App from your Smartphone Apps list.
2. On the top My Wallet section, tap or click Withdraw.
3. In the open Withdraw options, select Mobile Money.
4. Enter the mobile money number you wish to withdraw or send the money to.
5. Confirm that the Recipient Name: is correct and click/tap Continue.
6. Select the amount you wish to withdraw, if it’s not listed, select Other and enter the amount.
7. Confirm the transaction details and click Confirm Withdraw,
8. Enter your SafeBoda Wallet PIN to send.

Please Note: Each transaction costs UGX 500 and you can transfer to any mobile money number.

How to Transfer Money from SafeBoda Wallet to a Bank Account

1. Open the SafeBoda App on your mobile.
2. Click on Withdraw.
3. Select the Bank option.
4. A list of available banks will be displayed for you to choose from. Choose your target bank
5. Enter the Bank Account details including the name and account number. 
6. Input the amount you wish to send and confirm the transaction with your Wallet PIN

Please Note: At the moment, the SafeBoda App supports KCB, Stanbic bank, Equity Bank, ABSA bank, DFCU bank, and Centenary bank. Each transaction costs UGX 1,000.

In summary, the SafeBoda is slowly becoming a necessity for every smartphone holder, given the fact that Bank Of Uganda approved the service as a safe and secure wallet, you can use it to send and receive money, recharge airtime or data bundles, pay utilities, pay friends or shop online all in a single App available in the Google Play and Apple Store.

In a Tweet by Fitspa – the association representing the Uganda and global fintech community, SafeBoda which trades as Guinness Tech Uganda limited has ben authorized by the central bank to issue small and medium electronic money transfer services in the country.

The new licenses come at a time when the company is rolling out SafeBoda Wallet, a mobile wallet for SafeBoda App users that accept s deposits and withdraws from agent points. Also, the SafeBoda App already has money transfer features where a customer can send money to another customer at no charge.

But with the new licenses, it means, SafeBoda Wallet will evolve to compete with already existing mobile money transfer services like MTN Momo, Airtel Money, and of recent Wave Uganda. Well, with the service already active on the SafeBoda App, customers will be able to do more at little or no charges on in-app transfer services.

In a statement by SafeBoda, the company aims at driving its growth in Uganda, Kenya and Nigeria where it operates, by scaling its hailing app to offer new payments and financial services to its customers, passengers, drivers and merchants in the regions it operates.

According to the company’s Vice President of Payments and Financial Services, Tim Jamieson, a pilot for working capital loans will soon be launched as the firm awaits its National Payments Systems (NPS) license from the Bank of Uganda. This is part of the SafeBoda continued evolution that has seen it expand its service offerings from a mere Boda hailing App to a food and deliveries platform, into airtime and payments among other services it plans to avail to its customers.

Jamieson inks that priority for working capital loans will be given to female-run enterprises as a way of boosting women inclusion in businesses since they rank as the majority financially class of people in the market. Among other innovative products in the pipeline where the company hopes to put Women on the frontline include the SafeBoda payments ecosystem, open-loop products, savings products, and alot more.

In doing this, the firm aims to provide a cheap ecosystem that allows its customers to send money across networks for free and drastically reduce the cost of withdrawing these funds, according to Jamieson.

“If you want to send UGX 5,000 across networks can cost you over UGX 1,000 to do so or UGX 2,000 if you are sending to two to three different networks; we think there is more that needs to be done here. Mobile money ecosystems form such a large part of the back bone of Uganda and Africa as whole, so there should be continuous improvements in how this is delivered,”

Jamieson explains

He alludes that while cash is still a predominant method of payment in Uganda and across the African continent, the COVID-19 pandemic has steadily attracted people towards cashless transactions presenting a golden opportunity for Financial Technology Companies (FinTechs) to grow with new solutions.

However, Jamieson says that there is a need to work together as an industry to share knowledge, technology, and regulatory stack while working with regulators to solve existing problems.

“We have a huge unbanked and underserved population; we have a high cost of time and money to access financial services and at the same time we have this amazing fast growing ecosystem of FinTechs that is coming through locally. We need to bring them together so that we solve these problems as together,”

Furthermore, he commends the Bank of Uganda for the NPS, which he says has provided a stringent regulatory framework that will give customers confidence that they can transact with electronic money service providers, including FinTechs, in a safe and secure way.

SafeBoda food which is the company’s major delivery service now holds a shop feature where a user can easily buy home essentials through the App.

Through leveraging new sellers and existing merchants on the SafeBoda app, users can now purchase basic needs ranging from food to market essentials including fruits and vegetables as SafeBoda inked in its quick usage guide:

• Craving for local food? Order Kya’kulya on SafeBoda app by tapping the food icon on your SafeBoda app and search for Kyakulya on the app.
• Fruits and vegetables? Tap on food delivery, type shop for groceries in the search bar.
• Thirsty? Coca-Cola? Rwenzori? Minute Maid? Order from Coca-Cola by selecting food delivery on your app, type shop in the search bar and select shop select.
• Working from home and need to send a document? Use “Send” on SafeBoda app
• Need to send money to a friend? Use “SafeBoda Wallet” on SafeBoda app
• Need to shop for home essentials, tap on food delivery, type shop in the search bar, tap shop shell select.

However, for users to get full and easier access to the SafeBoda services, updating the App comes in handy with rebranding on the App’s main dashboard with major alterations on the food & shop tab.

With free delivery on all orders, SafeBoda is not only utilising its over 10,000 active drivers base, but also posing stiff competition to Jumia which ranks as the bullish e-commerce delivery service in Uganda.

Recently, SafeBoda food became a reality as a service to allows customers order for their favorite dishes in a fashion similar to how rides are requested on the app

With a total of 4 services are currently offered by the Camp including Boda hailing, Food delivery, shipping (delivery), and Cashless transfer on the App, SafeBoda’s attempt in the money transfer league is next on its launch deck

SafeBoda Wallet is the new service currently accessible via a new domain SafeBodaWallet.com offering a waitlist option for customers who wish to have an early taste of the money transfer service.

Once launched, SafeBoda wallet will allow users to send, receive and withdraw money at low transaction rates. This means the service is a direct Fintech product being developed as a Mobile Money alternative

With such a wide catalog of services, will SafeBoda shine or it may follow the failed startups curve? Well, It’s a matter of time to see how the once fulltime Boda hailing camp will groove against its increasing competition lane.