Most of us in Nigeria often assume everyone living abroad are swimming in money. And why won’t we? They are living in much better organized societies with much more opportunities. Instead of asking such family and friends for money, have you ever thought of asking them to transfer some of those opportunities back home?

What is SympliFi?
SympliFi is a mobile App that enables individuals living in the U.K to provide their loved ones back home in Nigeria with access to loans for their businesses, instead of sending money. The idea is simple but genius, your relative living in the U.K puts a refundable amount in the app, say $500 to stand as a guarantor for you to get a business loan starting from N250,000 for your productive uses here in Nigeria. One you repay your loan, your relative in the U.K gets back their $500 and thus, all shall prosper!

This app eliminates the need of using property as collateral and also eliminates the burden of begging people abroad for money, who might not be as financially buoyant as most of us often assume.

How does Symplifi works?

1. The process is pretty basic, after a prospective borrower submits a loan request on the app with one of their lending partners
2. The person abroad backing the loan receives a confirmation message before the loan request can be processed
3. After confirmation is received from the person abroad, if they are a first time customer they will receive a link to download the SympliFi App and top up their SympliFi wallet for the amount of the refundable collateral required to back the loan
4. The collateral is securely held in your SympliFi wallet for the duration of the loan. It doesn’t move.
5. The bank contacts the borrower to disburse the loan; the person abroad starts earning cashback on the collateral in their wallet
6. When the loan is repaid in full the collateral is released back to the guarantor, plus the cashback earned; in the event of default, any amount owed to the bank is deducted from the collateral.

How do I apply for a Symplifi loan in Nigeria?

To get started, head over to the Google Play Store iOS store to download the Symplifi loan app. Once you download the app, you should also encourage your guarantor to create a wallet.

FAQs

What are the benefits of the service?

Keep your money. No money sent, no money spent. The collateral securely stays in your wallet. When the loan is repaid, you’re free to move the money. No fees, no FX costs.
Earn cash back. Earn 1% or more cash back on your collateral whenever your loved one accesses a loan.
Unlimited access to loans. Your borrower has access to unlimited loans, anytime they need cash – with just one collateral.

Who issues the loan to the borrower?
They work with regulated lending partners in the home country that partner with SympliFi to extend loans to your loved ones. The lender performs a quick credit check on the borrower prior to disbursement. The borrower is responsible for repaying the lender directly. If the borrower does not repay, the lender will make best efforts to collect from the borrower before they can request the collateral.

Does Symplifi have any fees?
There are no fees, there are no FX costs whatsoever. Unlike money transfer companies, they generate revenue from their lending partners. As with any loan, the borrower back home will pay interest and standard processing fees to the bank issuing the loan.

Is Symplifi Legit?

Symplifi is safe and legit. They are a British company based in London. Though they do not disburse funds to borrowers, they thoroughly vet their lending partners. Their office is located at Unit 6 Queens Yard White Post Lane,
London E9 5EN
Simplifi Financial Solutions Ltd Company Number 10872479 from the Registrar of Companies for England and Wales.
Payment and e-wallet services provided by Rapyd (trading name CashDash UK Limited) authorised and regulated by the UK Financial Conduct Authority as an eMoney Institute (EMI) with license number 900769.

Who owns Symplifi

The company was co-founded in 2019 by Maurice Iwunze and Gregoire Lecomte. Maurice Iwunze currently serves as the CEO of Symplifi.

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Stanbic IBTC Bank, one of Nigeria’s most innovative player in the financial industry is offering its customers instant loan of up to 4 million Naira through its EZ Cash loan offers.

If you’re in need of a quick loan to buy a new phone, home appliances or you even need money for the big stuffs like weddings, paying school fees, or Medical bills, Stanbic IBTC EZ Cash loan has got you covered with an offer ranging from N20,000 to N4 million in instant loans.

And there’s more, this short term loan comes at a ridiculous 2.5% interest rate a month. For instance you borrowed one hundred thousand naira to meet you immediate short-term needs, your interest at the end of the month will be only two thousand five hundred naira!

How to apply for Stanbic IBTC EZ Cash

EZ Cash via Website:

You can apply for this loan via the online portal, the major advantage of this method is the website has a loan calculator that you can use to determine how much interest you will pay before applying

• -Visit the Stanbic IBTC bank EZ Cash portal
• -Input your account number
• -Enter your registered phone number, as it is on your BVN and click Get Started
• *An OTP (One time Password) will be sent to your registered line
• -Respond with the secret OTP and proceed
• -Provide correct responses to the following prompts

EZ Cash via USSD Code

For those who don’t have access to the internet, they can still get a loan via USSD code.
For direct access to Stanbic IBTC Ez Cash, the code is *909*44# on their registered line. After dialing this, just make sure to follow the prompts as fast as you can as the code times out in seconds.

How do I qualify for the EZ Cash Loan?

The eligibility criteria for EZ Cash loan is actually quite basic, you should have Stanbic IBTC bank account for obvious reasons, your account should have been active for at least a year before the date you applied for the loan, you must be older than 18 years old and younger than 60 years old, your account must be clean, that is you shouldn’t have any dud-cheque (bounced cheque) complaint on your account.
Here are these criteria further explained:

Your account must be a Stanbic IBTC current account: the bank uses your transaction history to calculate the loan limit you would be eligible for. More transactions on your account will qualify you for higher limits. Or better still, if your account is a salary account, the bank can more accurately determine your income and offer you the best loan you can repay easily.
Your account must be at least a year old from the date of opening: this will lend some credibility to your account history, and it will also assure the bank that you’re not just there to take their money and disappear.
You must be between 18 years old and 59 years old: this is considered as the working age group and the age you’re mostly likely to earn your own money. If you’re under the age of 18, you’re most likely still living with your parents and don’t have a source of income yet. Similarly, if you’re 59 and above you probably would have retired and not have a regular day job.
You must have a clean dud-cheque (bounced cheque) record: this would prove your integrity, having a clean record that shows that you’ve never committed fraud before is a good indicator that you will not commit fraud in the future
Your credit reports (CRMS & CRC) must be marked as clean: with the introduction of BVN, the credits of Nigerians can now be viewed and evaluated more easily, a clean credit report means you do not have any outstanding loan that you haven’t paid with any lender on your BVN.

FAQ these FAQs were selected from the Stanbic IBTC website, Read the full version here

How much can I borrow?
EZ Cash offers loans ranging from N20,000 to N4 million, but you can borrow any amount within the limit advised to you during your application.
What happens if I only spend part of the money I borrowed?
In the event you withdraw money to an amount less than the sum initially borrowed, interest charges will only apply to the amount withdrawn.
When is the Interest taken from my account?
Interest payment for the amount borrowed is taken at the end of the month.
What are the charges/fees?
Management fee of 1% on the amount borrowed
Value Added Tax (VAT) of 0.05% on the amount borrowed
Insurance fee of 0.35% on the amount borrowed
What is the longest time I can borrow for on the Stanbic EZ Cash?
EZ cash offers short-term loans ranging between 1 – 12months.
What are the factors that affect my loan limit?
As mentioned earlier, your loan limit will depend on your average monthly income and the monthly loan repayments on existing loans (if any)
What is the EZ Cash interest rate?
Interest is accrued daily on loan outstanding balance and debited monthly and is already part of the monthly repayment to be made by the client. The interest rate is 2.5% monthly, 15% for 6months and 30% for 12 months.

How do I contact Stanbic IBTC EZ Cash loans?
To do this, contact your personal account manager or the customer care on 0700 909 909 909. You can also send an email to CustomerCareNigeria@stanbicibtc.com.
Can i pay off the EZ cash term loan before the end of tenure and access full limit again after paying off?

Answer: Yes, you can pay off your loan before the end of tenure. You will be able to access another EZ Cash loan within 30 days of repayment

The post Stanbic EZ Cash – Apply For Instant Loan in Nigeria appeared first on AFRICA EXPLAINED.

Nigeria’s oldest bank, First Bank Plc, is offering a short-term loan without collateral, facility designed to provide funding solutions to school owners and other educational institutions nationwide through its FirstEdu product.

The bank in a publication last year, revealed that in 2019 alone it supported educational institutions in Nigeria with money to the tune of over N10 billion.

Majorly for primary and secondary schools, First Edu Loan was packaged to fund the schools’ working capital. Many times, logistics, staff hiring, environment improvement, and so on are borne by the school proprietors and proprietresses. This workload, plus the money constraints, stunts the growth of the school and staff, thereby creating a huge gap in demand-quality supply.

How to Apply for FirstEdu Loan

Here is a step-by-step procedure on how to apply for a First Edu Loan. Honestly, this application might just be the simplest loan application in the specified industry. See the step-by-step guide below:

• To Apply for a FirstEdu Loan,
  • Download the Retail Loan Application Form
  • Complete the form and submit to the Retail Team at the nearest FirstBank branch

Eligibility criteria for First Edu Loan

• For your school to qualify for the laon, you must have a student base of up to 100 pupils.
• Your school must also have a corporate account with any commercial Bank in Nigeria.
• Your school must be registered with the corporate affairs commission CAC

What documents do I need to access the First Edu Loan?

The school is required to provide the following documents in order to proceed with its loan application.

• Government approval to operate the school
• An evidence of the number of students in your school (school register, roll call, etc)
• The school’s CAC documents
• Other bank(s) statements (if any)
• School’s management profile
• The school’s cash flow

Do I need to provide collateral to get this loan?

No physical collateral such as building or vehicle is needed the only Collateral is undertaking to domicile school fees with FirstBank.

Can this facility be used to construct school buildings?

The facility is a short-term facility designed to finance working capital needs of schools. There is a product (Commercial Mortgage) available for schools who want to construct school buildings.

What amount can a school get from the bank under this product?

Loan amount range from N 500,000 to N5m for a 90 day period and Maximum Loan amount of N20m for up to 24 months.

When can a school apply for this facility?

You can apply today as this facility is available to schools all through the year.

The post FirstEdu Loan: How To Get Short-term Loans Without Collateral for School Owners in Nigeria appeared first on AFRICA EXPLAINED.