Wonga.com launches on mobile
Wonga.com has unveiled what is claims is South Africa’s first ever mobile credit site.
Wonga.com launched in South Africa in May 2012, serving as a micro-lending website which offers short-term loans to qualifying customers.
The company provides small, short-term loans starting at R2,000 for first-time clients, moving up to R8,000 for long-time users who have built up a strong trust profile with the company.
The mobile extension of Wonga.com will give new and existing customers access to small short-term cash loans using their mobile phones. The service is targeted at customers who aren’t able to regularly access the Internet via PC.
“A mobi site has always been part of our business plan for SA. We are fully aware that not everyone has regular access to the internet on a desktop PC, and in order to offer our service to the majority of eligible consumers, it was vital to have a site which could be accessed via a mobile phone,” said Wonga SA CEO, Kevin Hurwitz.
The service is accessible on both high-end smartphones as well as on feature phones at the lower end of the handset spectrum, Hurwitz said.
Wonga mobile phones
The total cost of repayment of loans is calculated in real-time and clearly displayed on the screen, before the customer proceeds with the online application process.
Wonga has come under fire in the UK for its high annual percentage rate (APR) which, in real terms, is at 360%.
Wonga’s APR in South Africa is 60%, with the monthly rate at 5% and the daily rate falling slightly under 0.17%.
These rates and charges are calculated as follows:
- Service fee: R50 per month (+VAT at 14%);
- Initiation fee: 15% on the first R1000 plus 10% of the amount of the agreement in excess of R1000, but never to exceed R1000 (+VAT at 14%);
- Interest: 60% per annum or 5% per month – (calculated at 0.1667% per day).
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