Mama Money was founded in 2013 by Mathieu Coquillon and Raphael Grojnowski and was launched to drastically reduce remittance costs so that more money arrives in the pockets of the people who really need it. After reportedly growing by 300% in 2019, the fintech startup has experienced consistent and exponential growth in its company and product offering.
“We’re incredibly grateful that 2020 was our best year yet. It’s terrible to see how tough the pandemic has been for so many people and businesses,”
said co-founder Mathieu Coquillon.
“Lockdown restrictions spurred the adoption of digital money transfer services. While there is a large informal network for money transfers that operates predominantly in cash, services like Mama Money make it easier for people to transfer money from the safety of their homes, which became particularly appealing during lockdown,”
added Coquillon.
Mama Money Partnerships
Mama Money enables users to send money digitally to over 50 countries across Africa, Asia, and Europe, however, its humble beginnings were money transfers from South Africa to Zimbabwe back in 2015. The company has always focused on keeping costs low for their customers and to achieve this, it has partnered with the world’s leading payment providers and money transfer operators which allow their customers to send money to Western Union, MTN Money, Airtel Money, and many more.
“We saw that people were paying ridiculous fees of up to 20% or more for sending money to their families for essential needs like school fees and medical bills. Many were handing cash to a driver to physically transport it across the border to their mama. It was a slow and unsafe process and sometimes the money would never arrive. There was a clear need for a safe, low-cost, and reliable way to send money across borders using mobile technology that makes sending money as easy as sending a WhatsApp message. It’s now possible with Mama Money’s mobile app,”
explains Coquillon.
How Mama Money Works
Mama Money’s transfer facility is safe and licensed by the South African Reserve Bank. The app is available for download on Google Play or the App Store. To Register yourself for Mama Money via the Family App can be done in 3 easy steps:
- Enter your personal details (like your name and your number)
- Take a photograph of your passport or ID (make sure you get the whole page in)
- With your passport or ID open, hold it next to your face and ask a friend to take a photo.
Simply submit your details for approval by the Mama Money Compliance Team and you’re ready to start sending!
Users can pay for their money order in cash at any of the leading retailers :
- Pick n Pay,
- Boxer,
- Makro,
- Game,
- Shoprite,
- Cambridge,
- Checkers,
- Spar,
- Top it Up,
- Selpal,
- Flash
Alternatively, users can pay via EFT from any of the leading banks
- FNB,
- Standard
- Bank,
- Nedbank
Lastly, users have the option to pay directly off their Mama Money Green Card. Higher limits are also available for those who would like to send more money home!
