InnBucks, the Simbisa-owned Chicken Inn change app, and domestic remittance company has announced its rates for 2023. The highlights are that sending amounts above US$5 will now attract a fee of 3% down from the previous 5% and amounts below US$5 will only attract a fee of 1%.

InnBucks tarrifs and charges January 2023

Deposits and withdrawalsDepositsFree
Withdrawals2%
Sending to another InnBucks accountUp to US$51%
Above US$53%
Transaction limitsAccount LimitUS$500
Sending/recieving per transaction
(Via USSD or InnBucks App)
US$250
Monthly transaction limit
(Via USSD or InnBucks App)
US$1000

Effectively InnBucks is committing to only making 1% from your transactions. The 3% for amounts above US$5 is the 2% IMTT tax and their 1% on top. The same goes for withdrawals. The 2% is again IMTT tax with InnBucks not taking anything for that transaction. Oh, and if you had missed it, IMTT tax on domestic remittances was 4% and only came down to 2% on January 1, 2023.

InnBucks is thinking volumes over value

The economics of a business selling airtime, bread, or matches is it’s a volumes game. In remittances, it’s not really the case. Convenience and availability of cash especially when withdrawing is what gets the numbers. Rates probably come third on that hierarchy.

InnBucks already has the rates and availability of cash covered. After all, they could just piggyback the cash-rich fast food brands that are providing an office for InnBucks. Where they are still looking to solve is convenience in location. And they have been working hard on it.

So far, we have spent US$4,5 million on new stores in the country and an additional US$11 million will be deployed to complete our expansion programme in the current financial year, which ends in June 2023.Simbisa Brands CEO, Warren Meares – Herald

At present Simbisa has 291 outlets all over Zimbabwe and is in the process of adding 45 more this year. A majority of these outlets will be InnBucks-ready which again expands the reach of the remittance service.-techzim