eBusiness Weekly
Cassava Smartech is a technology Group that leverages digital and financial technologies to “build shared economies, drive financial inclusion and promote economic empowerment”.
Cassava Smartech is an offshoot from Econet Zimbabwe and was separately listed on the Zimbabwe Stock Exchange in 2018.
Cassava’s main business unit is mobile money service provider Ecocash, but the company also provides banking services through Steward Bank, and insurtech services through Ecosure, and Moova. There are many other brands under Cassava including Vaya, Clean City, Maisha Health, Akello Edutech, Mars, EcoFarmer, Muzinda Hub, Ownai, Ruzivo and Connected Lifestyle.
In its results for the three months ended 31 May 2021, Cassava said inflation adjusted revenues more than doubled, compared to the same period last year.
Commenting on the performance, the company said it remains cautiously optimistic that this trend will be sustained amid caution that a third wave of the pandemic could lead to additional restrictions on people and businesses in order to manage the spread of the virus.
As for Ecocash, the mobile money business experienced steady growth over the period recording a 60 percent increase in transaction values.
According to management, the increase in transaction values was largely driven by an increase in wallet funding. Active customers also continued to recover during the period.
Steward Bank’s revenue contribution remained stable in the quarter and is expected to increase going forward following the successful implementation of a core banking system upgrade finalised in April 2021.
The Bank’s performance was driven by higher transaction values as well as growth in interest-earning assets.
The Insurtech business continued on a positive trajectory, writing new short-term and life insurance policies as it grows the customer base for all insurance products. New products and alternative payment channels were introduced leading to a doubling of our short-term insurance customers.
