Branch App: How You Can Get A Loan Within 24 Hours

July 17, 2019

1640

Branch App: How You Can Get A Loan Within 24 Hours

Branch is a personal finance loan app designed to meet the needs of individuals and small scale businesses. The Branch app was launched in 2015 by Matt Flannery, the co-founder and ex CEO of Kiva.org and became available in Nigeria in 2017 . Matt established this app in order to cater for the need of loan services in developing countries.

He started by targeting the Sub-Saharan market, precisely in Kenya.
According to Matt, “Banks only lend to rich people, and then there are micro-finance institutions, which tend to lend to lower-income communities”. The serial entrepreneur wanted to help the small businesses and common people often ignored by the banks.

For any user to access loan from Branch app, he or she will have to download the app on via the mobile phones, and then log in the necessary information. Better still, the users can log in through Facebook, where the app collects data. When the necessary conditions have been met, the applicants is required to give necessary information about his or her bank account details and also the bank verification number, request for the amount and apply for the loan.

According to feedback received by Cobra Review from successful applicants, it is possible to receive loan within 24 hours. However, there is a limit to how much a first-timer can access. The limit shifts upwards as the user pay back his or her first loan and his credit rating is increased.

Applicants are expected to pay back loan within the period of a week and to refund a loan the applicant goes through the app, select the amount to pay back and pay using your bank or ATM Card. To be eligible to collect the loan, you must have a valid account with any bank in Nigeria. In addition, users can raise a request for loan services anytime and anywhere through their smartphone without the use of collateral.

On the flip side, Branch app is one of several mobile apps that intrude the privacy of smart phone users . Once a user downloads the app there are terms and condition that must be met to have access to loan services. Personally I downloaded the app, some of the app’s request made me a little worried.
The app (permission) request from Branch come with tags such as ‘read SMS and call log’. By following this command, the users grant Branch access to all private messages and call logs.

Research has shown that the data gotten from text messages and call logs are used as criteria to screen applicants for loans. Isn’t this an intrusion into users’ privacy? I feel it is. Perhaps, there should be a proper and non-intrusive way of running background checks on applicants to determine their credit-worthiness than ‘ransacking’ their call logs and messages trails.
Apparently, users are only made to believe data is only gotten from their Facebook profile – but unknowing, by granting the app permission request, Branch apparently and automatically use the access to obtain personal information.

Users who have had their applications for loan rejected are baffled. They still are ignorant of how the app run a more deeper checks on them by tapping information across messages and call logs. For instance, one Tomisin whyte claimed, “After 6 months of applying for loan on this app without being given a single loan, I can confidently tell you the app is trash, I got to know about Branch before any other app, till date I haven’t gotten a single loan from them, tried Carbon, I was given, same with Quickteller loans. This app is thrash.”

Another user, Akkiraj Kiran also said, “Its after entering my details and uploading all the data, branch app is notifying me of not being eligible and asked to reapply after a certain period decided by your system .I request you to delete all my data that is with you and if needed in future i will register once again thank you.”

Carbon and Quickteller app are also apps that grant similar loan services to small enterprises and low income individuals.