New South African fintech startup launches

A new South African fintech startup, PayCurve, aims to provide an early salary access solution and improve users’ financial wellness for both employees and employers.

Functioning as an ethical early access salary solution, PayCurve provides an innovative service for locals

Launching in June 2020 during the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, PayCurve’s fintech solution’s top priority is ethics. This leverages the fintech to offer employees financial freedom without adding to their debt burden.

Founded by a team of Johannesburg-based entrepreneurs, PayCurve aims to help employees achieve financial wellbeing.

Tamir Sacks, CEO of PayCurve explains that his interest in a salary access solutions piqued after reading a Harvard University paper that highlighted the benefits of fintech liquidity solutions for both employers and staff.

“It became abundantly clear towards the end of 2019 that this simple but novel concept had the potential to change the way South Africans support themselves through the month, simply by enabling engagement with their end-of-month salaries.”

Hailing from a consumer-facing credit background, Sacks immediately recognised the potential this early payday access model could have in a local context. In South Africa, reliance on short-term credit is the norm as most employees have to wait up to 30 days for the next salary cycle.

Sacks adds that an early salary access solution such as PayCurve is a necessity for most South Africans who live paycheque to paycheque each month. With the possibility of unforeseen expenses arising during the month, PayCurve provides an easy solution for locals.

“They often turn to other emergency credit products such as payday loans and short-term credit. As such, South Africa has been crying out for alternative, affordable credit solutions, and we believe PayCurve offers this financial lifeline.”

How it works

Catering to businesses, employees are able to set up their account with PayCurve. Access to the platform provides users the opportunity to obtain their earned salary throughout the month.

Sacks explains that the platform ensures that the service is provided ethically and that several data points are considered when calculating the amount of accessible money to a specific employee.

“We have engineered a solution that comprises a variety of safeguards to ensure that our payday access is offered responsibly and ethically.”

This additional measure protects users from overextending themselves and maintaining their budget.

PayCurve also offers additional support in the form of financial literacy courses, monthly budgeting tools, and, when necessary, debt consolidation for those employees requiring further financial intervention.

Read more: Five South African crowdfunding platforms
Read more: SA tech startup launches B2B workshop for tech companies

Featured image: Tamir Sacks, CEO of PayCurve (Supplied)