Honestly Reviewing Chipper Cash [Its Major Problems]

Some money apps are worth it, and some not worth installing if all you want to do is send, receive and convert money fast. In this review, we’ll scrutinize Chipper Cash, focusing on the common problem of this money app.

Chipper Cash is a fintech app owned by Voyse Technologies Nigeria Limited. Chipper Cash is legit and fully licensed by the CBN (Central Bank of Nigeria) as an IMTO (International Money Transfer Operator). The app developer is Critical Ideas Inc. The address is 350/360 Ikorodu road, Maryland, Ikeja, Lagos. The website is chippercash.com.

Is Chipper Cash Legit?

Chipper Cash is legit per se, and licensed by the CBN. However, it has some problems, which you’ll find out here before signing up.

In 2022, some of the top media outlets, including Premium Times, Bloomberg, etc., reported that Chipper Cash is not licensed to operate as remittance or payments service providers in Kenya. Currently, this app works in some countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Rwanda, Uganda, South Africa and the US.

If you are signing up to convert your funds, you won’t have the best rates here. Chipper’s conversion rates are ridiculously lower than what you’ll find in the market. As an example, Chipper Cash may charge you 1,500 naira to deposit 1 USD but will pay you 1,300 for withdrawal.

Unlike most money apps, deleting your Chipper Cash account isn’t simple. You have to use the ‘Chat with Us’ button to connect with an agent. You’ll then have to send them a short video where you say the last 4 digits of your BVN used to verify the account. You can say this is annoying but Chipper will say “it’s for security”.

As for the customer support, the response rate is slow. If you have some urgent transactions to complete, and you encounter a problem, then you’ll have to wait for hours for help. Chipper’s agents are fond of closing a complaint ticket even without resolving the issue.

As for response to public complaints, Chipper Cash has two annoying templates:

1. We apologize for the challenges experienced. Please share your details via chipper.help so we can have this resolved.

2. We noticed you left us a beautiful comment but rated us “1 star” We hope you would take a minute to rate us “5 stars” if there are no issues you would want us to address.

All responses are done using the support name ^H.G, probably just a copy and paste by different agents.

The app’s design is unique and clean, however, you may not have the best experience navigating it. It comes with some bug experiences occasionally being fixed by Critical Ideas Inc. For example, the USD card service for topping your up card can randomly go off and then work again. If you forget to top up your card as a result, Chipper Cash then will charge you for insufficient funds. There have also been reported instances where created virtual cards disappeared (not expired) with funds, and the user has to pay for a new one.

As for getting a virtual card on Chipper, you’ll pay a creation fee of $3, which is debited from your USD balance.

There’s also a maintenance fee of $1 charged monthly on your account, typically on the 28th of every month. If you do not have enough funds in your card for this charge, the money will be taken the next time you top up or fund your card. There’s also a credit transaction fee of 1% on any funds you receive from external sources such as Visa Direct) into Chipper USD card balance. While gathering data for this review, someone suggested this app should be renamed from ‘Chipper Cash’ to ‘Chipper Charge’—sounds similar anyways.

How Does Chipper Cash Work?

International money transfer is something Chipper does, that’s why it’s a licensed IMTO in Nigeria, for example. However, Chipper also allows you to buy airtime, data bundles, and pay bills. Of course, you add cash as well as cash out if you need to withdraw funds from your account.

Chipper Cash also has a feature for you to check foreign exchange rates, such as the dollar to naira and other currencies.

Chipper Cash also has some rewards. As an example, you can earn rewards by referring your friends and family. When someone opens a Chipper account with your referral code, you both receive a reward from the app—it’s a win-win this one.

You can also invest with Chipper app. It’s anti-fractional, which means, just like Bamboo, Chaka, and similar stock trading apps, you can buy fractions of shares, not just whole shares. This leads us to our next point that Chipper Cash is a mix of digital banking and stock trading.

We talked about Chipper’s virtual card earlier, and some of the experiences with this card. Please refer to the earlier sections. As for the positive, this card works in many places where Visa cards are accepted. You can compare it to Grey‘s virtual card, however, Grey’s network is Mastercard.

If you like, you can pay your bills with Chipper, such as DSTV, GOtv, Startime, and Smile.

How to Open Chipper Cash Account

Install the app from Google Play Store or Apple App Store
Select your country
Enter your phone number. You should receive an OTP to the number you submit
Enter this 6-digit code to continue with Chipper Cash signup. You can also verify your number using a USSD code. If you choose the USSD option, it’ll show you a code to dial, and it’ll register you right away. Pick whichever method works best for you
Select Why You Use Chipper Cash. It could be for supporting family, buying airtime and paying bills, purchasing goods and services, for your business, or for savings and investing
Enter your personal information, including your name and birthday.
Choose a Chipper tag. This is a unique name for receiving payments on Chipper Cash (it’s similar to Cash App’s $cashtag. So, this is a username people will use to send you money. This username is also part of your Chipper link
Enter your address details. This will include your physical address, postal code, and etc.
Set your PIN code. You can also use your fingerprint to log in

You might encounter difficulty with Chipper’s face verification. Just don’t waste your time if it refuses to go through—wait for some time and then retry.

Pros and Cons

Pros

Available on Android and iOS devices
User friendly app
Allows for sending and receiving money internationally
Supports a virtual card by Visa
Licensed as an IMTO by the CBN (in Nigeria)

Cons

Poor customer support
Low currency conversion rates when withdrawing money
Requires a hectic video submission process to delete your account
Expensive virtual card creation and maintenance fees

Is Your Personal and Bank Information Safe with Chipper Cash?

Chipper Cash has not had any customer data abuse reports. You can trust this fintech app with your personal and bank information. It is owned by Voyse Technologies Nigeria Ltd, a CBN-licensed company.

Personal information collected includes your name, age, email address, phone number, personal description, marital status, state, photograph, NIN, and home address (such as utility bill). Bank information collected by Chipper Cash includes your BVN (bank verification number).

When you install the Chipper Cash app, information collected from your device, with your permission, includes your installed apps, device ID, device type, IMEI, GPS information, device operating system, IP address, personal contact numbers, call logs, and SMS logs.

It’s up to you to make this decision. Chipper Cash app may not be a perfect fintech app but one thing it does is actually transfer money.

Chipper Cash is a legit app because of its IMTO CBN license. In this review, Chippa Cash gets a 2 out of 5 rating for ridiculous currency conversion rates, many virtual card charges, and poor customer support.

Read Also: How to Transfer from Opay to Kuda