How Stella Got Her Wealth Back
“OPay has really changed my life!”, Stella Osanakpo, a mobile money agent situated at Ojota, declares. She stumbled across the OPay platform on Facebook and went on to become the first agent to offer basic financial services to the people around her in Ojota Biode Motorpark. “People had to go out and make their transfers, they had to leave work, to leave the park and go looking for a place to send their money. But when they heard that a money agent was coming in, they were happy…almost all of them come to me for one transaction and another and I relieve the burden of having to leave their work” her sense of purpose as a problem solver was evident.
Stella’s success story with OPay inspired the question, “How else can we empower our users financially — with very little money/ low barriers?” . Two typical answers come to mind when we think about financial empowerment — yield and capital.
OWealth was the yield answer.
OWealth is a high yield account where users who have deposited funds earn 10% per annum interest paid into their account every day. A user can withdraw their money and the daily interest they have earned any day, anytime just like they would from a commercial bank account.
How does it work?
If Stella funds her account with N10,000 she would earn a 10% per annum interest (N2.46) paid daily into her account. She can withdraw N10,000 plus all the interest she has earned daily so far, anytime she wants. Through OWealth, Stella is on her way towards financing her son’s education, marketing spends for her OPay agent business and household items for a better quality of life- which are the things she cares deeply about.
Here are a few things we are doing differently for our agents and users like Stella to earn interest from their OWealth account deposits:
Daily Interest — with a balance of as low as N500, Stella can start to earn a daily interest- that means 10% per annum pro-rated daily. She can also withdraw her interest earned with her deposit whenever she wants.
Flexibility — people like Stella prioritise liquidity. They need access to their cash when life happens. This “investment” account allows her to make a withdrawal anytime with no fees or penalties, just like she can with her bank account at a commercial bank.
Micro Investing — This allows her to start saving and earning with as low as N500. Unlike other investment tools like treasury bills, where she would need a minimum of N100,000 to earn interest, OWealth has been democratised to include users across all socioeconomic levels. By taking out this barrier to entry, users at the bottom of the pyramid will get to experience the joy of having their money work for them.
Access to “invested funds” — On the app, Stella can track her daily interest, withdraw her interest and principal anytime. This means she doesn’t have to wait for any period of time to access and use her interest income.
Account Maintenance — Our priority is to collaborate with our users like Stella to grow their wealth. Hence, being charged for account maintenance, like she would have been in commercial banks, isn’t an experience she will have.
So how can Stella get started on OWealth?
In 4 simple steps:
- Click on the OWealth icon on the OPay app homepage
- Upgrade her account by providing her BVN
- Click on Invest on the OWealth homepage
- Deposit any amount not lower than N500 in her OWealth account
Who drives OWealth?
OWealth is driven by BlueRidge Microfinance Bank, regulated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and deposits are insured by the Nigerian Deposit Insurance Commission (NDIC). OWealth is done in partnership with Zenith Bank and Stanbic IBTC. We invest the funds in risk-free Treasury Bills, mutual funds and short term placements.
Our goal is financial inclusion, empowering more and more people with the right financial products to attain aspirations. We are excited to collaborate with our users to share their experience with us to move the needle forward in making financial inclusion happen in Nigeria. To reach out to us, follow us on all social media platforms @Opay-ng.
