Internet penetration in Kenya has forced several companies to align their products to the offerings of online services. The practice has seen notable growth in financial services, where fintech-based have taken advantage of several services that were not traditionally offered by banks, including a wide array of payment platforms, to mention a few, and created platforms for them. As a result, banks have been on a race to incorporate such services in their portfolio in a bid to stay competitive, an activity that matches the mass exodus to online banking apps that are packed to the brim with some neat features.
This is the approach CBA Loop is taking: its app, which was relaunched a couple of days ago has since been updated to include a set of useful tools that are quite frankly missing from competitive apps. The features are bundled in a modern, good-looking app (more of that in another day), and the user interface is pretty good.
Other than the introduction of online loans (which you can get access to after you perform a couple of transactions that are used to curate credit scores), the latest version of Loop is integrated with Invest and Goals options.
Loop Invest
Investing can be a challenging and intimidating venture to get involved with. One of the merits is the possibility of future pay offs that are actually rewarding, but first-time investors, like yours truly, may lack the knowledge and support to make smart investment decisions. These barriers are common in a number of local financial apps. However, Loop promises to counter the challenges with its app’s modern design, low costs and automation because it takes care of all issues and presents you with the best rates in the market.
To set up an investment, you need as low as Kes 1,000.
Loop Goals
People hardly save, probably because the habit of saving wasn’t instilled in them as they grew up. Those who do are doing so for one thing: retirement. Even considering short-term savings, people use their funds to serve other pressing priorities.
Loop hopes to help on-the-go consumers to become smart about their money, regardless of how little their income is. Its Goals option targets people who want to make short or long-term goals. The feature aims to make users feel in control of their money, a notable feat as people work on demand and earn volatile incomes.
In this case, users can set up multiple goals and save toward achieving each specific target. Loop also discourages the need to open multiple bank accounts for different saving needs.
