Kenyan startup Overview has launched its Android personal finance management app, a B2B and B2C service that integrates payment platforms and allows users to monitor their finances in real-time.
The aim of Overview is to enrich a user’s mobile payment services, and help them gain complete control of their finances.
Users are instantly notified of every transaction, and guided through transaction details. Over time, Overview graphs all transactions and compares them to trendlines and past performance, offering users a digital statement of all their accounts and also categorising all expenses.
Co-founder Henri-Jérôme Pauwels told Disrupt Africa Overview builds user centered front-end interfaces for mobile wallets and banks, and offers white label plug-and-play modules that can be personalised and integrated into existing apps.
“We believe that neo-banking should not just apply to heavily funded startups in the industrialised world. What about about giving financial institutions in emerging markets and developing economies the possibility to become customer centered neo-banks as well?” he said.
“Overview’s modular front-end interfaces achieve just that, allowing mobile wallets and banks to focus on their core business, with Overview assisting them along the customer journey with enhanced user experience and user interaction.”
The team was put together last year, committed to improving the financial capabilities of people in emerging markets and developing economies. The service has now been launched.
“We see a gap between what the digitally native – used to Facebook, Snapchat and Youtube – expect from an app and what financial institutions have been able to provide them. Reading the app reviews clearly showcases the issue,” said Pauwels.
“Where personal finance management solutions are concerned, the users are particularly underserved. Highly performant mobile payment solutions generate heaps of data, but unfortunately most of this data is of little use to the users for managing their finances.”
On the provider side, meanwhile, financial institutions are often tied to core banking IT systems. Pauwels said these don’t give these institutions the flexibility to adjust to user requirements swiftly because of internal legacy issues.
“They miss out on creating value for both the user as for their organisation,” he said. “This is where Overview provides flexible and cost efficient solutions to bridge the ever widening gap with the user. Overview helps providers build meaningful digital relationships that lead to increased customer retention and ultimately higher revenue per user.”
The self-funded startup is currently preparing its first investment round to grow the team and fund expansion into other markets. Overview has also been accepted onto the Visa Bootcamp, powered by Nest in Nairobi, which Pauwels said has been a landmark for the startup.
“It really provided us with the possibility to reflect on our activities and value proposition and finetune it with the assistance of the mentors. It also gave us credibility and direct contacts to potential customers,” he said.
“As a company focusing on user centricity, we want to be as close to the users as possible, continue to understand their changing requirements and provide adequate solutions quickly and directly.”
Overview’s initial market is Kenya because it is the home of mobile money and the most digital market in Africa, according to Pauwels, but he said the startup will expand to other countries where mobile wallets are present and growing.
“This includes other East African countries, as well as Nigeria. From June onwards we will also start reaching out to Asian and Latin American countries where mobile wallets are popular,” he said.
