Interviewed by Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee, MBR Team

wagely is Asia’s largest and fastest-growing financial wellness platform offering workers visibility into their daily earnings, instant access to earned wages, and the power to plan ahead - proven to decrease employee turnover, enhance retention, and increase business savings. Its mission is to help employees regain control over their income and finances. MBR was in a conversation with Team wagely to learn about their inspirations and vision behind wagely.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: wagely, Asia’s fastest-growing financial wellness platform, expanded its operations into Bangladesh in 2021. What were the major motivations for the company to choose this particular country?

wagely: Bangladesh is one of the fastest-growing economies globally and is home to around 70 mln workers. With much of this economic growth being contributed by lower and middle-income workers that play a significant role in some of the core industries such as RMG and manufacturing, Bangladesh has a large population that is currently financially underserved. As managing financial worries is the number one issue in the life of lower and middle-income workers in Asia, most Bangladeshi workers are struggling to cover basic needs with little to no option to build sustainable savings. With limited access to conventional financial services, many are pressured to turn to illegal lenders and loan sharks when in need of emergency cash to cover unexpected expenses. The effects on workers are long-lasting, causing substantial financial stress that leads to a loss in productivity, higher absenteeism, irregular behaviour, and increased turnover that severely impacts business performance. wagely provides a solution that allows Bangladeshi workers to gain financial control, benefiting both the worker and the workplace.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: Earned Wage Access (EWA) is a relatively new concept in Bangladesh. How are the users responding to this idea?

wagely: wagely’s holistic financial wellness platform is the first of its kind to pioneer Earned Wage Access (EWA) in Bangladesh. Nevertheless, we have partnered up with some of the largest and most forward-thinking brands in the RMG sector, such as Desh Garments, SQ Group, Ha-Meem Group, and many others. Our partners have seen tremendous adoption rates of upwards of 90 per cent, speaking of a clear need for fair and sustainable financial services for workers.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: How does wagely finance the fund it requires to provide the employees early access to their earned wages? How does it manage the risk of delayed salary disbursement from the employers?

wagely: wagely pays out the accessed salary directly into the salary bank account of the worker. At the end of the pay cycle, the amount accessed will be deducted from the worker’s paycheck after they calculated and cleared the rest of the worker’s payment.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: In Bangladesh, wagely has already onboarded several RMG enterprises. Kindly share with us your expansion plan in Bangladesh. What are the industries wagely is planning to explore next?

wagely: wagely has partnered with some of the biggest names in the RMG industry of Bangladesh, such as Desh Garments, SQ Group, Ha-Meem Group, International Classic Composite, and many others. While we continue to focus on the RMG sector with its 4.5 million workers, wagely is an industry-agnostic solution. We are planning to expand the service across industries to help the majority of low-income and middle-income workers get access to their salaries on demand.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: The impact of wagely’s operations seems to be primarily employee-centric. What are the incentives for employers to collaborate with wagely to provide the EWA solution to their employees?

wagely: wagely is a financial benefit for employees and equally so for employers. An assessment of one of the largest and most reputable companies in the RMG sector that has partnered with us shows conclusively that after the implementation of wagely, turnover declined by an average of 33%. Further, additional data suggests that wagely positively impacts productivity, absenteeism, and recruitment, saving partnering businesses thousands of dollars on a monthly basis.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: The lack of technological and financial literacy among wagely’s target group in Bangladesh can be a barrier to its smooth operations. How is the company handling this issue?

wagely: wagely has been specifically designed to serve lower and middle-income workers with low financial and technological literacy. The application that can be accessed barrier-free via smartphone, kiosk, or desktop is easy to use and avoids unnecessary or confusing content. In addition, wagely provides holistic support for all its partners. We actively assist workers in registering for, withdrawing from, and resolving issues through our permanent presence within the various factories. Not only do we help workers with how to use the wagely App, but we also provide regular financial education and training sessions.

Akhlaqur Rahman Sachee: wagely has recently raised USD 8.30 mln in pre-Series A funding. Undoubtedly, this is a massive accomplishment for any startup company. Would you please kindly share with us what your next move would be to attract more local and foreign investors?

wagely: wagely will continue to create awareness of the importance of employee financial wellbeing to businesses. Furthermore, we aim to provide additional financial services to our users, such as insurance, investing, and savings, that can help with become more financially resilient.