Wonga.com (UK) today announced the launch of its online, short-term loans service in South Africa. Early technical trials have shown South African consumers also like the fast, convenient and transparent nature of the service.

The London-based company, which also recently launched its Wonga for Business service, will initially offer consumer loans in South Africa, with a dedicated team based in Cape Town. The online service will be powered by the same real-time, automated loan processing technology that was developed in the UK and has already processed millions of applications since 2007.
 
Wonga founder and CEO Errol Damelin, said: “It’s a country I know well and consumers in South Africa have not previously had access to a high quality, fully online credit service. We believe we can generate more positive customer reaction in new territories this year and South Africa is an exciting, developing market to begin with.
 
“We have now provided more than four million loans in the UK, while achieving very positive feedback from customers, and our ambition has always been to use the internet and data to deliver a much better cash flow solution around the world. This year will see us expand into other countries and also delivering new financial products, such as Wonga for Business.”  
 
Today’s launch is the company’s first commercial offering outside of the UK. Wonga’s unique approach to short-term credit is based on its automated decision and loan processing technology, meaning it can provide small cash loans responsibly, 24-hours-per-day and within minutes. Offering speed and convenience with a transparent price has already seen the company attract many customers away from the UK’s high street banks and win a number of respected awards for its technology and customer offering.
 
In South Africa, Wonga will aim to provide its service to a new generation of consumers who are increasingly connecting to the internet and looking for solutions to everyday needs online and via mobile. Damelin continued: “We will provide the same responsible and consumer-focused approach to credit that we’ve developed in the UK. Time’s up for traditional lenders who design products to suit themselves and hide charges in the small print.”
 
Wonga.com allows applicants to choose the exact amount they wish to borrow (up to a maximum of £400 for first-time applicants in the UK, or up to R2,000 in South Africa) and the amount of time they wish to borrow it for (up to a month). The company then displays the total cost of repayment (TCR) prominently on its website and smartphone apps, before the online application process and on-screen decision.
 
Wonga offers these flexible loans using technology and drawing on thousands of pieces of public data to make instant yet accurate lending decisions - without the need for human intervention or hard documentation. Around two-thirds of first time applications for loans are declined in the UK and nearly a third of customers repay their loans ahead of time, with industry-leading low arrears rates achieved.

(Source - Wonga.com Press Release)