PiggyVest vs Cowrywise: which Fintech Company is better for Saving and Investing?

With several fintech companies coming up, Nigerians have been enjoying a variety of choices regarding savings and investment.

Cowrywise and PiggyVest are among the top fintech firms, and they are enjoying wide acceptance among Nigerians. With that, people are pondering which is better: PiggyVest or Cowrywise?

These two major fintech platforms in Nigeria specialize in savings and investment. Each offers different features, so it might be challenging to choose one over the other.

Both companies offer such services on mobile apps for easy ways for Nigerians to earn money over time. While they remain similar in many ways, they also differ in ways that can make one platform more suited to certain needs than the other.

This article will explain the differences between PiggyVest and Cowrywise to help you decide which is better for your savings and investment needs.

About PiggyVest

PiggyVest is a Nigerian fintech platform that launched its activities back in 2016. It was initially made for saving, but the ability to invest in the application was later added.

This app allows users to save money by deducting small amounts daily, weekly, or monthly from their accounts. Thus, it is very easy to save without thinking about it.

One of PiggyVest’s major selling points is its “Safelock” feature, which allows users to lock money away for a certain period of time and offers higher interest rates than usual savings accounts.

Target Savings by PiggyVest: Users can input specific savings goals and, quite frankly, work their way toward achieving these targets.

Over time, PiggyVest has become a reliable platform for people to save and grow their money with minimal contact with mainstream banking.

About Cowrywise

Cowrywise is another Nigerian fintech company founded in 2017 to enable people to save and make intelligent investments.

It works on a more structured investment platform, making multiple investment portfolios, including mutual funds and treasury bills, available for its users. 

These mutual funds are further diversified, meaning money is invested across various securities to minimise risks.

It helps an individual start investing with little money and acquire the benefits accruable from professional financial management.

Like PiggyVest, Cowrywise allows for automatic savings: users can set daily, weekly, or monthly deductions from their bank accounts.

The setup of such automated savings ensures that a person can save small fractions with less stress. Cowrywise also offers a “Savings Challenge” feature, encouraging users to save more by setting group or individual savings targets.

Cowrywise also educates users about investments through its content to help them better understand the risks and rewards of investing.

Which has a better saving plan: Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

Cowrywise offers various savings plans, including the Cowrywise Savings, Cowrywise Fixed, and Cowrywise Target plans.

The Cowrywise Savings plan is flexible; one can save as much or as little as one wants, while the Cowrywise Fixed plan is a fixed deposit with an option for higher interest rates for a particular period.

whereas Cowrywise target plans allow the creation of a particular savings goal, and subsequent tracking is done on its achievement or otherwise.

Conversely, PiggyVest offers sundry savings plans: Piggybank, Target Savings, and Flex Naira.

In the Piggybank plan, savings can be very flexible-one saves as much or as little as he pleases. Target Savings allows a user to create a savings goal toward which he works his way up, reaching such an amount.

The Flex Naira is a flexible savings plan with higher interest than the Piggybank plan.

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Which one is better to save money with? Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

Generally speaking, PiggyVest appears better in saving due to more flexible and accessible saving options.

With PiggyVest, you can access features such as “Safelock,” where you lock away money for higher interest, and “Target Savings,” where you save toward a specific goal. These make it easy for users to automate and customize their savings plans.

While PiggyVest is more rigid about savings issues, mostly inclined to frequent small deposits, it has a more gamified approach to savings; it features the reward of “Piggy Points” when one attains each goal in savings.

Cowrywise adopts a more flexible approach in that you can set your savings goal and target. Interest on savings is up to 10% per annum, higher than with Piggybank.

Furthermore, the Cowrywise dashboard provides a comprehensive overview, making it easy to track one’s savings and make adjustments on the go.

While Cowrywise also allows for automated savings, PiggyVest stands out with its additional features and flexibility in managing short-term and long-term savings.

Which One is Better to Invest In: Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

Generally, Cowrywise is observed to be better in investment, considering that the platform offers users more organized investment opportunities. 

Cowrywise invests in professional investment portfolios such as mutual funds and treasury bills, making them available to investors who can then avail of well-diversified and managed funds.

Thus, it is ideal for people seeking a reliable investment method with minimal research.

PiggyVest also provides investment opportunities through “Investify.” However, this is perhaps less diversified and structured than Cowrywise.

Those who are very serious about investing and saving money for long-term benefits may want to try Cowrywise.

So, when considering Investment, Cowrywise is better and more dynamic in its approach since the platform allows the user to invest in various available assets while closely monitoring the performance of such investments.

Still, PiggyVest is much more automated and hands-off about investments, which may prove a massive advantage to users who want to invest their savings with minimal fuss or even expertise.

Which has more customers, Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

Regarding the size of its customer base, it would go to PiggyVest because it has built its customer base into well over 1 million registered users.

Cowrywise, on its part, though smaller regarding active subscribers, still manages over a million registered users.

This is probably because PiggyVest entered the market much earlier and focused its innovations mainly on micro-savings, gaining more appeal for a wide circle of users.

But within the last years, Cowrywise has grown fast, and with further expansion of its services and offerings, it will keep growing its client base.

PiggyVest’s wider appeal, especially its popular saving features, helped it gain more customers in Nigeria.

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Which has the best user experience: Cowrywise vs. PiggyVest?

Regarding the user experience, both mobile apps offer ease of use and allow one to operate and manage savings plans easily.

In addition, it is very easy to contact the customer support teams of both companies for answers to questions or resolution of issues.

However, Cowrywise has a more comprehensive website with clear details associated with the platform’s services and features, making it easier for users to make better decisions.

Which is safer? Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

When it comes to security, both Cowrywise and PiggyVest are concerned about the security of the funds that their users invest in their systems.

Both are licensed under the Central Bank of Nigeria, thereby considering strong measures to keep users’ funds safe.

For this reason, Cowrywise has teamed up with Meristem Trustees Limited-one of the leading trustee companies in Nigeria-for holding money deposited by users in a separate trust account.

PiggyVest has teamed up with AIICO Capital, one of the leading asset management companies in Nigeria, to hold money deposited by users in a separate trust account.

Which has the least charge: Cowrywise or PiggyVest?

Both Cowrywise and PiggyVest charge minimal fees for using their facilities. Cowrywise charges a monthly maintenance fee of N100 on accounts whose balance falls below N10,000.

PiggyVest charges a monthly account maintenance fee of N100 on accounts below N5,000. However, both platforms offer free debit cards with no deposit or withdrawal fees.

Which is Better Between Cowrywise and PiggyVest?

Each of these options has peculiarities that might make one more appealing to a specific user need. If you were looking to save money chiefly, PiggyVest would probably be the best option because of its flexible and high-interest savings plans. 

This platform fits any user who intends to save either for immediate needs or long-term goals.

Whatever your focus on investment, Cowrywise will be a better option. From professionally managed investment portfolios to mutual funds, the investment options are more structured to increase wealth over time.

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FAQs

Conclusion

Choosing between PiggyVest and Cowrywise depends on your personal financial goals. If you aim for easy, flexible savings with the ability to invest from time to time, you may find PiggyVest more suitable.

However, if you’re looking for platforms that focus more on investments and provide more structured financial products, Cowrywise will do just fine. Both platforms are trusted and work effectively in helping Nigerians save and invest.

References

• hulkapps.com/piggyvest vs cowrywise
• cowrywise.com/cowrywise vs piggyvest/
• techeconomy.ng/piggyvest vs cowrywise
• siit.co/cowrywise vs piggyvest

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