Ride-hailing company, Uber to partner with Flutterwave to launch Uber Cash.

Ride-hailing company, Uber is planning to partner with FinTech firm, Flutterwave to launch Uber Cash, a digital wallet feature in Africa.

Flutterwave is a B2B payment gateway network that allows clients to tap its APIs and also customize payments applications.

According to TechCrunch, the new partnership will allow Uber riders “top-up Uber wallets”.

However, Uber Cash will be available in the upcoming week in countries where ride-hailing services operate such as South Africa, Kenya,  Nigeria, Uganda and Ghana, Ivory Coast, and Tanzania.

Furthermore, Uber Cash in Africa will accept transfers from Flutterwave’s Barter payment app which was launched with Visa in 2019.

Uber’s General Manager for Sub-Saharan Africa, Alon Lits said, “depending on the country, you’ve got a different top-up method available. For example, in Nigeria, you can use your Verve Card or mobile money.”

Alon Lits further said that ride-hailing company, Uber continued to operate in Sub-Saharan Africa during the COVID-19 crisis but government rules shut the company down in Uganda and Lagos, Nigeria.

Again, he disclosed that there has been a significant drop in actual ridership. To deal with the coronavirus pandemic, he said, drivers and riders are always required to wear masks.

“We’re actually leveraging facial recognition technology to check that drivers are wearing masks before they go,” he said.

On the other hand, Flutterwave has partnered with Chinese Alibaba’s Alipay to facilitate digital payments between Africa and China.

Flutterwave has also collaborated with WorldPay and Visa. The fintech plans to serve as the African payment provider for WorldPay’s clients with the ability to issue physical and virtual credit cards while processing payments.

Uber Cash is a separate payment option within the Uber app where users can make budgets for all Uber products into one account. To top up this account, customers transfer money from their debit, credit, or gift cards into their Uber Cash account.

Uber has been in Africa since 2015.