Interswitch Launches Digital Address Verification Service with OkHi

Emma Okonji
Smart addressing startup, OkHi, has launched its smart address verification product with Interswitch Group, Africa’s technology-driven company focused on the digitization of payments across the continent. Quickteller, Interswitch’spayments and wallet service, has become the first business in Nigeria to use the OkHi address verification service.

Founded in Kenya in 2014, OkHi provides digital address verification to financial services, tackling a problem space that is holding back growth and stifling access to credit for millions of Nigerians. OkHi’s smart addressing technology makes it easy for financial services to verify their customer’s address through their smartphone, replacing the need for utility bills or physical visits.

Following the launch, Interswitch will provide all of their customers an OkHi address, providing them access to larger wallets, faster loans and improve last-mile delivery through Quickteller’sCitimart and Global Mall. In addition, Quickteller customers with an OkHi address will be able to use it for personal purposes or with other delivery services – helping to make daily tasks easier.

The unique technology provides an alternative to existing Know Your Customer (KYC) and paper-based processes, facilitating a more seamless digital service, helping to reduce onboarding times and lower operating costs.

With the accelerating digital adoption in Nigeria, and its transformation of the way people interact, OkHi’s arrival is well timed. In a recent pilot with Stanbic IBTC, OkHiproved that it could increase the accuracy of address verification by 29 per cent, increase the speed by 4x and reduce the cost by 52 per cent.

CEO and Founder of OkHi, Timbo Drayson, said: “At OkHi, we have developed the first solution in the world that can collect an extremely accurate address and verify it through a smartphone. To have Interswitch launching us to millions of people, via Quickteller, gives us an incredible platform to tackle financial inclusion in Nigeria.”

Commenting on the development, Interswitch Group’s Divisional CEO for Industry Ecosystem, Chinyere Don-Okhuofu, said: “At Interswitch, we take our customers and their evolving needs seriously and we are committed to identifying opportunities to unlock economic value for Africans. This partnership with OkHi is built on the need to digitize and simplify the existing address verification system thereby dealing with another significant barrier to financial services growth across Africa.”