Personal savings is the easiest way to raise money to start up and grow entrepreneurial business enterprise. Salary or wage earners as well, need to put a way some chunk of their daily, monthly earnings as they come to meet up personal, future needs. In other words, every one whether employed or self-employed needs to save for rainy days and make some investments that can earn residual income.
There is no better time to consider using online savings platforms for your savings than now. Technology is disrupting and reshaping the way we make savings. Every facet of human activities is experiencing paradigm shift and going digital. Digitalization is making transactions seamless. The Coronavirus pandemic has given a quantum lift to digital life.
Conducting business transactions in any branch of any of the conventional banks in Nigeria these days gives an experience no one would like to experience every now and then. It takes average of 2 hours to perform business transaction in any physical bank in Nigeria. If you visit the banks later than 2 PM, you are likely to be turned back at the gate by the security men because there are more than enough people already in the banking hall and premises to be attended to before the closing time. Why should you go through all that stress when you can perform your savings transaction using your mobile device in a secure manner and still earn higher interest than what conventional banks can offer?
Why You Should Use Online Savings Apps to Save Money
Free Cost of Savings: Yes, you heard me right. Saving money has its own costs especially when you save traditionally — conventional banks or cooperative societies. Making a trip to commercial banks to make deposit would cost you transport fare or time to trek and waiting time before you would be attended to. Imagine spending at least N400 on transport to bank and wait in queue for at least 30 minutes to make deposit of N3,000. The cooperative societies deduct 5% of your savings as administrative cost to collect and safe keep your money. But with online platforms, you can perform all transactions at your convenience in real time for free. Savings are mostly automated.
Online Savings Platforms Encourage Saving Culture and Fights the Temptation of Unnecessary Spending: You would feel discouraged to journey to a physical bank location to make deposit of N1,000, but you can save as little as N100 on online platforms.
Higher Interest Rates: Conventional banks offer less then 5% interest rate. Just last month, August 2022, CBN ordered commercial banks to raise minimum interest rate on savings deposits from 0.15% to 4.2%.
Cooperative societies deposit your savings in banks, make money from your savings and still charge you for saving your money. When you juxtapose cost of saving, little or no interest and inflation, you will realize that you’re losing money saving money over time. Online savings and investment platforms offer high interest rates than conventional banks. Online platforms offer 10-15% interest rate on savings and 10-25% interest rates on investment. Does this sound incredible to you? Well, that is real. The reason is not farfetched. Online platforms do not incur high operating costs like conventional banks that have many physical branches and workforce.
Therefore, if you want to save money periodically with reasonable interest on your savings better than what conventional banks offer, online saving account is what you should have. It takes away the stress by combining simplicity, flexibility ,discipline, convenience for your financial management and financial freedom. However, you must ensure that such app or platform is approved by the Central Bank of Nigeria to avoid falling victim in hands of sharks.
Read also: List CBN Approved Fintech Companies in Nigeria
Most of these apps offer investment, loan, insurance services along side savings, for the purpose of this article, we are taking a look at their savings offerings. A look at the savings offerings of these apps shows that some promise higher interest rates to their customers than others. We have therefore, compiled list of 7 savings apps the offer highest interest rates. Note however that these interest rates as promised by these apps are subject to change.
It must be noted, however, that these interests in savings are as promised by the respective apps.
List of Top 7 Savings Apps in Nigeria that Offer Highest Interest Rates on Savings
- PiggyVest
- Kuda Bank
- Sumo Trust
- V Bank
- KoloPay
- ALAT by Wema
- Cowrywise
PiggyVest
PiggyVest (formerly PiggyBank) is an app that allows you save and invest with convenience in a secured manner.
PiggyVest enables you save little amount of money periodically: daily, weekly, monthly. You don’t have to log in every time to save because everything is done automatically once you set up Autosave with the amount you want to save periodically. You also have the option of turning off Autosave.
When you open PigyVest account, you will have 5 wallets — PiggyBank, Target savings, SafeLock, Flex Naira, Flex Dollar and Investify wallets.
Piggybank: Is a core savings wallet where you save periodically in an automated manner. You can only withdraw from your Piggybank wallet on free withdrawal dates which are the last days of every quarter of the year. Withdrawal outside the free dates attract 2.5%. You also have a choice of setting your own quarterly withdrawal dates. You get 10% per annum interest.
Target Savings: It allows you to save consistently to meet a particular financial need. Interest rate is 10% per annum.
SafeLock: is a fixed savings which enables you lock up funds for a specific period of time (10 days minimum) without access to the funds till maturity. You earn 6 – 15.5% per annum interest, prorated accordingly, and depending on the duration you set.
Flex Naira: Is a savings account that you can save money in at your convenience, receive money from any other commercial banks. To receive money from other banks, select Providus Bank during the transfer transaction. You can withdraw from your Flex Naira wallet at will but once in 10 hours. You get 10% interest on your Flex Naria savings.
Flex Dollar: It enables you save, invest and transfer funds in Dollar. You can fund your Flex Dollar Wallet from your Flex Naira Wallet or from your bank card. You can save minimum of $1. You can withdraw your dollar savings in Naira into your local bank or Dollar into your Dollar denominated domicilary account at prevailing buy price at the parallel market. You also get 5% interest on your dollar savings.
Investify: It is a PiggyVest feature which enables users to invest their savings in pre-vetted and low-medium risk, primary and secondary investment opportunities to earn more money. Investors earn up 25% interest per annum on their investments.
Interested Rate: PiggyVest offers 6-15.5% interest per annum on savings.
Sign up to PiggyVest
Kuda Bank
Like PiggyVest, Kuda is an online banking platform licensed by CBN to operate as a microfinance bank in Nigeria. It offers savings services, among other offerings.
Kuda Bank app offers flexible savings plans that allow users to choose how the make their savings — daily, weekly and monthly. This helps users save on regular basis. It also offers fixed deposit plan, which attracts up to 15% interest per annum.
Kuda Bank app is the most used online banking app in Nigeria with over 5 million downloads on Google Play Store.
Interest Rate: Kuda Bank offers 10% interest per annum on flexible savings plan, while its fixed savings yields up to 15% interest annum.
SumoTrust
SumoTrust is another automated savings and investment app helping to revive Nigerians' saving and investment culture. The saving app offers you the opportunity to easily and automatically saving as well as to make investment.
SumoTrust platform offers you 3 saving plans, which include:
Main Savings: This plan gives you the liberty to decide on how to save either daily, weekly or even monthly. Fixed Savings: It’s a plan that enables to save your funds for one year without you having withdrawal access to them till maturity with up to 15% interest annually.
Mission Savings: This plan is specifically made for those who want to save money to meet a target or to carry out specific projects within a specific time frame.
Fixed Deposit: This plan allows users to put away some funds away for specific period of time without having access to them till maturity, usually 1 year.
Interest Rate: SumoTrust promises offerings of 10% interest on savings on ‘Main savings’ and ‘Mission savings’ accounts, and 15% on the ‘Fixed Deposit’ account annually.
V Bank
V Bank is another mobile application y is another digital bank in Nigeria that offers people the ability to save and get high interest on their savings. V Bank is a product of VFD Microfinance Bank, licensed by CBN. V Bank operates like any other bank, just that every transaction on done on digital platform. With a V account, you can expect a streamlined digital and mobile banking experience. You can perform transactions such accessing if your accounts, swift and secure transfers, withdrawals, and pay bill.
With V Bank you can avoid unnecessary bank charges, no paperwork and everything is done on your phone. The V app allows you to track your expenses and income, group budgets, and set spending limits.
Interest Rate: V Bank offers up to 14% interest per annum on savings.
KoloPay
KoloPay is fintech app that simplifies and encourages savings in a secured manner. KoloPay has different savings plans, such as:
EasySave: it allows to save little by little on daily, weekly, or monthly basis.
Autosave: Autosave options schedule and automate your daily, weekly, or monthly savings.
Koloshare: Koloshare feature allows one to invite others to contribute to one’s saving goal. You can save for multiple goals at same time.
Interest Rate: KoloPay app LP promises interest rate up 10% per annum. It also has a withdrawal date policy.
ALAT by Wema
ALAT is the innovative digital banking platform offered by WEMA Bank Nigeria. It allows users to perform all their transactions using mobile devices from anywhere with having to visit any physical branch of the bank.
With ALAT you can set your savings goal and determine how much you want to save and the duration — target saving. You can enable Auto Save on your savings or choose to save at your own pace. It also has Group Savings option that allows you save with friends and family.
Interest Rate: According to interest calculator on the platform, ALAT offers interest rate of up to 8.75% on savings.
Cowrywise
Cowrywise is a mobile app where you can save money, invest money and earn impressive interest. You can start saving with N100.
Savings Plans
Regular saving: You can save money at your terms for a minimum of 3 months (90 days).
Life Goals: Save money with or without automation, free of riba, absolutely interest free. This is suitable for Muslims or any other person who do not want interests.
Saving Circles: This allows you save together with others to meet targets.
Interest Rate: Cowrywise promises up to 8.5% interest rate per annum.