Careem's New Digital Wallet to Ease Money Transfer

Careem Pay expands its services by announcing the launch of a new digital wallet that stores real money for customers across the UAE, as well as a new peer-to-peer (P2P) transfer product that allows users to send, request, and receive money using just a phone number, personal QR code, or personal payment link.

Careem plans to simplify payment experiences and provide financial services to empower customers with an easy user experience. Careem currently has 50 million customers across its 15 markets, four million cards on file, two million captains and 22,000 merchants ranging from restaurants and pharmacies.

Speaking in a virtual press conference on Thursday, experts at Careem said that the new services are carefully designed to tackle issues that often arise with having to carry physical cash.

Mudassir Sheikha, CEO and co-founder of Careem, says that he sees a “great opportunity” for financial services, not just across the UAE, but the whole Middle East and North Africa region. He explained that the success of the Careem Super App, since it was launched over a year ago, had resulted in a highly engaged community of users that were eager to try out other services. This is where Careem Pay and its new services come into play.

“Today, we have 18 services on the Careem app in Dubai, and each of these simplify people’s lives in some shape or form,” he said. “We have seen some incredible traction on the Super App and the majority of our customers are using the new services on the Super App. Multi-service users are doing three times more transactions per month than single service users; and their monthly retention is at least 30 percentage points higher.”

Careem Pay’s purpose, he explained, is to empower people by simplifying their payment experiences and access to financial services.

“Payments in our region is not a simple experience – it is full of friction. We have been delivering secure payments for customers, captains, and merchants for years, but there is still a huge opportunity to improve the experience that people face when using financial services online.”

The Careem Pay digital wallet and P2P transfer product are being launched in partnership with First Abu Dhabi Bank and its payments solution partner Magnati, and are authorised by the UAE Central Bank. Careem integrated a digital process of verifying customer identities so that they can open their digital wallets from the comfort of their homes with just a few clicks. Money from the Careem Pay digital wallet can also be withdrawn to any UAE bank account.

The digital wallet can also be used to pay for goods and services on the Careem app and will soon be usable for goods and services beyond the Careem app. It adds to the other products available through Careem Pay, which include paying bills, splitting bills, and making card payments both on and beyond the app - including at third-party online merchants. Careem Pay recently launched a new checkout product that simplifies payments made at online merchants outside of the Super App. Careem Pay will soon issue physical and virtual Careem cards that can be used at ATMs and at merchants, and introduce international remittance solutions for both Customers and Captains.

Madiha Sattar, VP, Careem Pay, added:

“Through our new digital wallet and P2P transfer product, we are helping people overcome many of the hassles they face with everyday payments. Our customers in the UAE can also use our super-simple bill payments service and pay with Careem Pay at selected online merchants. These products are the first step towards realising our vision of simplifying financial services across the region as we expand Careem Pay into more markets.”

To send money with Careem Pay, customers can select a recipient from their contact list or use the recipient’s phone number - there is no need to add the recipient’s IBAN or add them as a beneficiary. Customers can also request payments through the app or share their personal QR code or payment link to receive a payment. To move money to a UAE bank account from the Careem wallet, customers can simply tap the withdraw button in the app. Careem Pay’s P2P transfer service is available to all customers in the UAE and will be introduced in other countries soon.

News Source: Khaleej Times