- FinTech startup Kaoun is aiming to increase financial inclusion in Tunisia via its first product, Flouci.
- Flouci is a mobile and web app that allows people to create free bank accounts, remotely.
Although Tunisia hosts a large number of locally and foreign-backed banks from the public and private sectors, access to financial services remains difficult for many. The World Bank describes inclusive financial services in the country as “fragmented, incomplete and difficult to access”, and the proportion of Tunisians formally involved in the financial system is low in comparison to neighboring states.
Kaoun: Building a FinTech Product
In the last decade, especially following the 2011 revolution, most of the country’s population has become well-versed in the ways of using social media platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Twitter, and local eCommerce platforms such as Jumia and Tunisianet. This has made this audience more digitally savvy, but that does not extend to financial services.
As reported by the World Bank, the inclusive financial services in the country remain as incomplete and difficult to access. It is also worth mentioning that no online nationwide payment solution is available for Tunisians. PayPal and other international payment processors as well are not able to operate in the country, mostly due to the restricted financial rules set by the Central Bank of Tunisia.
Suggested Read: Find Out Why PayPal Does Not Work in Tunisia
To bridge the trust deficit and lack of awareness for first-time adopters of financial products digitally, it is critical for a fintech startup to ensure that customers feel reassured and get high quality services, that they have been wanting, for years now.
Kaoun is a FinTech company with a mission of building a pipeline for financial inclusion by using data science to power payments and credit scores.
“Our mission is grounded in both the problems of the world in which we live and the future we strive to create. Today, we live in a mobile-first, cloud-first world, with billions of people still excluded from formal financial services, and the transformation we are driving across our partnerships is designed to enable Kaoun and our customers to thrive in this world.”, founder Anis Kallel, mentioned.
“We currently do business in Tunisia, and are dedicated to fulfilling our mission of giving every Tunisian the opportunity to be part of an inclusive financial world. Once we deem our goal to be within reach – we are ready to apply our model in any country in the developing world.”, founder Anis Kallel, added.
Flouci: Increase Financial Inclusion in Tunisia
Kaoun’s first product is Flouci, a solution that it is designed to help people create bank accounts, facilitating the process through an innovative Know Your Customer (KYC) system via their smartphones.
Once the user finished up with the onboarding process and has confirmed their identity, usually using customer’s national ID, a Flouci wallet is then created, and can be linked to then bank account.
The customer can then use the Flouci wallet to carry out different financial activities, such as paying merchants or making domestic remittances, by phone number or by scanning a QR code. The solution also provides people with the ability to create electronic signatures to digitally sign official documents and access a range of governmental services.
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