How to grow your payments app with mobile money agents
By SendPay Business · · 2 min read
In many countries, the mobile money agent on the corner is where people put cash into their phone wallet and take it out again. Agents are often small shops, phone kiosks or market stalls that earn a fee on each transaction and have to juggle their cash and their digital float all day. Many agents serve several providers side by side. A payments app that gives agents a simple way to serve its customers, pays them fairly for each transaction and makes it easy to rebalance their float can win agents quickly, and every customer who walks up to the counter sees your app.
Talk to mobile money agents
Ask local mobile money agents:
- Which providers do you serve today, and what do you earn on each transaction?
- How often do you run out of cash or digital float, and how do you rebalance?
- What do customers ask for that you cannot do today?
- What else does your shop sell alongside mobile money?
Give agents a simple way to serve your customers
Agents already know how to handle cash in and cash out. When your app lets them do the same for your customers in a few taps, adding you is easy.
Make float and earnings clear
Showing agents their balance, their fees and their history in one place, and letting them top up float quickly, keeps them serving your customers instead of turning them away.
Grow through agent networks
Agents are often organised under a master agent or a chain of shops. Win the master agent and you can reach dozens or hundreds of counters, and the customers who use them every day.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
What about phone shops?
The phone shops and airtime sellers guide covers busy shops handling many small payments a day, and how they can become places people find your app.
Phone shops and airtime sellers →What about corner shops?
The corner shops and small grocers guide covers shops that take many small payments every day and often keep a tab for regulars.
Corner shops and grocers →Can I call it a bank?
In most countries "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, a wallet, an app or a platform. The accounts and payments behind a SendPay Business platform are powered by licensed partners.
Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.