Little, the taxi-hailing service backed by Kenya’s Safaricom, has launched its own virtual wallet called “Little coins” as an in-app feature.
This feature requires riders to load the virtual wallet via an M-Pesa pay bill number to pay a driver or purchase airtime. Riders are allowed to deposit up to Sh50,000 into the wallet and they are allowed to pay for rides taken by dependents.
According to Kamal Budhabhatti, CEO of Little’s parent firm Craft Silicon, “Many drivers have started preferring cashless transactions because that is safe.”
He also said that Little Coins allows drivers to withdraw funds anytime, making it more convenient than other platforms where cash can only be taken out after a few days.
“Having cash on Little wallet is easy for riders since they do not have to worry about the change. It’s completely hassle-free. When the trip ends the driver account gets credited both get notified when the transaction is done,” he said.
The taxi-hailing firm intends to introduce paying off some bills through the online account very soon.
It is also planning to partner with a petrol station brand where drivers will be allowed to use the electronic funds to pay for fuel.
