TymeBank vs Wave
short answerBoth are traditional neobanks. TymeBank holds its own banking license and is the larger platform (~10M users). Compare custody, license, FX markup and fees field by field below.
TymeBank: 10M+ customers; kiosk onboarding; unicorn.
Wave: Radically cheap mobile money; 10M+ users.
Side by side
| TymeBank | Wave | |
|---|---|---|
| Category | traditional | traditional |
| Audience | underbanked | underbanked |
| HQ | Johannesburg, ZA | Dakar, SN |
| Founded | 2018 | 2018 |
| Custody | Custodial | Custodial |
| Regulation | Licensed bank | E-money institution |
| License detail | SA banking license | First non-telecom e-money issuer (BCEAO) |
| Card | Visa · Debit | No card |
| Cashback | Smart Shopper | — |
| Yield | Up to ~10% GoalSave | — |
| FX markup | — | — |
| Services | — | — |
| Stablecoins | No | No |
| KYC | Yes | Yes |
| Regions | Africa | Africa |
| Reported users | 10M customers (2024) | — |
go deeperFull profiles: TymeBank · Wave — or run your own comparison of up to four in the directory.
Figures compiled from public sources, for comparison only — not financial advice. "Up to" rates change constantly; always confirm with the issuer. Spotted an error? Suggest a fix.