ooba
ooba is a Cape Town-based bond originator that submits a single South African home-loan application to multiple banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel) for free, earning commission on settled bonds. It also distributes insurance, solar and personal-loan products through wholly-owned subsidiaries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1998
- HeadquartersCape Town, South Africa
- Headcount251–500
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingServices
What ooba does
ooba (Proprietary) Limited, founded in 1998 in Cape Town, is South Africa's leading home-loan comparison service (bond originator). Its core product, ooba Home Loans, accepts a single application from the consumer and simultaneously submits it to multiple banks — ABSA, First National Bank, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec and Sentinel Homes — so the customer receives competing quotes and is offered expert negotiation on rate and terms. The service is free to consumers; ooba is compensated by bank commissions on successfully settled loans. Supporting the core origination flow are a suite of self-service web tools (the Bond Indicator pre-qualification certificate, plus repayment, affordability, transfer-cost, deposit-savings, extra-payments and amortisation calculators) accessible via ooba.co.za and the my.ooba.co.za portal, alongside a phone-based consultant channel operating 8am-5pm on weekdays.
The underlying platform is a multi-bank broker integration, with estate-agent referrals fed in through the oobaCash tiered incentive programme (R100-R400 per settled bond). Acquisition is omnichannel: SEO-led organic traffic to the calculators, content marketing, paid digital with Facebook Pixel and Google Analytics tracking, social media (Facebook, LinkedIn, YouTube, Instagram), and the embedded agent channel. Beyond home loans, the ooba group operates wholly-owned vertical extensions including ooba Insurance (buildings, bond protector, household contents, vehicle insurance and wills, covering 200,000+ customers and R1.8B+ paid in claims), ooba Solar financing, and ooba Personal Loans, and facilitates First Home Finance (formerly FLISP) government subsidy applications through the National Housing Finance Corporation.
Revenue mechanics are transaction-fee commission on settled bonds (with referrals funded from the same bank commission pool), supplemented by insurance and adjacent consumer-finance distribution. The customer base spans first-time buyers, existing owners refinancing, low-income FLISP/FHF-eligible households, and non-traditional income earners; customer reviews indicate consistently strong service satisfaction (4.86/5 average across 4,550+ Hellopeter reviews). The company is privately held, employs 251-500 people, and operates exclusively in the South African domestic market.
ooba firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- ooba
- Legal name
- ooba (Proprietary) Limited
- Website
- https://ooba.co.za
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1998
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 251–500 employees
- Short description
- ooba is a Cape Town-based bond originator that submits a single South African home-loan application to multiple banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel) for free, earning commission on settled bonds. It also distributes insurance, solar and personal-loan products through wholly-owned subsidiaries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
ooba industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Mortgage Brokerage
- NAICS
- Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (522310), Mortgage and Nonmortgage Loan Brokers (52231)
- SIC
- Mortgage Bankers & Loan Correspondents (6162)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Government-Insured Mortgage Origination (FHA/VA/USDA) (FSALAAAI)
Keywords
Where ooba is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cape Town
- HQ country
- South Africa
- HQ region
- Africa
Offices1 record
Markets served
ooba business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Technology or R&D
Revenue model
- Bank Commission (Transaction Fee): ooba acts as a facilitator/broker earning commission from banks when home loan applications are granted and accepted by the customer. The service is free to consumers as banks pay the commission.
- Estate Agent Referral Rewards: oobaCash program rewards estate agents R100-R400 per successfully settled bond, funded from the bank's commission payment to ooba
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Free home loan comparison service |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
ooba product offering
Product offeringCore offering
ooba is a South African bond originator and home loan comparison service that submits a single home loan application on behalf of a consumer to multiple banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel Homes) and helps the customer compare quotes and negotiate the best interest rate. The service is free to the consumer, with revenue earned as commission from the banks on successfully settled bonds. Adjacent offerings under the ooba group include insurance brokerage, solar financing, and personal loans.
Product overview
ooba operates a multi-product financial services platform anchored by its core home loan origination service. The primary offering is ooba Home Loans, a bond originator that submits a single consolidated application to multiple South African banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel) on the consumer's behalf, comparing quotes to secure the best rate — a free service for the consumer. Supporting the core home loan service are multiple online self-service tools: the ooba Bond Indicator (DIY credit-check and affordability pre-approval), Bond Repayment Calculator, Affordability Calculator, Transfer Cost Calculator, Extra Payments Calculator, Deposit Savings Calculator, and Bond Amortisation Calculator. The group also operates vertically adjacent services under sub-brands: ooba Insurance (oobainsure.co.za) offering Buildings, Bond Protector, Household Contents, Vehicle Insurance and Wills; ooba Solar Financing; and ooba Personal Loans. Additionally, ooba facilitates applications for the government's First Home Finance (formerly FLISP) subsidy for low-income first-time buyers (R3,501–R22,000/month income), handling submission and progress monitoring. A separate estate-agent-facing product, oobaCash, is a tiered reward programme (R100–R400 per granted bond) that incentivises estate agents who refer home buyers to ooba.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- oobaCash: Agent incentive reward programme for estate agents that support ooba Home Loans
- Bond Indicator
- oobarometer
Products and services
- ooba Home Loans South Africa's leading home loan comparison service that submits a single application to multiple banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel Homes) on behalf of the home buyer. ooba compares the resulting quotes, negotiates rates and terms, and helps secure the best bond, including zero-deposit options. Free to consumers; revenue comes from bank commissions on settled bonds.
- ooba Bond Indicator (DIY Pre-Approval Tool) Free online self-service pre-qualification tool that performs a credit score check (610+ required), calculates affordability, and issues an ooba Bond Indicator certificate within approximately 2 minutes without impacting the user's credit score. Enables consumers to obtain a pre-approval before house-hunting.
- ooba Insurance (oobainsure) Insurance broking offering Buildings Insurance, Bond Protector Insurance, Household Contents Insurance, Vehicle Insurance and Wills. Over R1.8 billion paid in claims across 197,000+ claims for 200,000+ customers, with a 9.9/10 Hellopeter TrustIndex rating.
- ooba Personal Loans Personal loan products facilitated through the ooba group for South African consumers, accessible via the personalloans.ooba.co.za portal.
- ooba Solar Financing Solar financing products offered by the ooba group to help South African homeowners finance residential solar energy installations.
- oobaCash Estate Agent Reward Programme Tiered estate agent incentive programme that rewards estate agents R100–R400 per granted and accepted bond based on tier level (Marble, Bronze, Silver, Gold, Platinum, Diamond), paid weekly via EFT, in exchange for referring home buyers to ooba Home Loans.
- First Home Finance (FLISP) Subsidy Facilitation Service that facilitates South African government First Home Finance (formerly FLISP) subsidy applications for first-time buyers earning R3,501–R22,000 per month. Subsidy values range from R38,878 to R169,264 and can be used as deposit, transfer/bond registration cost, or to reduce the loan amount. ooba submits the application on the customer's behalf and monitors progress.
Quantifiable outcome
- 85% of home loan applications with pre-approval certificate are approved
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use ooba
Customer profileNamed customers3 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
ooba technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
ooba partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- Estate Agents (oobaCash Program)coreNetwork of estate agents who refer home buyers to ooba in exchange for cash rewards through the oobaCash program. Agents earn R100-R400 per successfully settled bond based on tier level (Marble to Diamond).
- National Housing Finance Corporation (NHFC)coreGovernment-linked corporation responsible for distribution of FLISP (First Home Finance) subsidies to qualifying applicants. ooba assists customers with FLISP applications and refers eligible buyers to NHFC for subsidy processing.
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
ooba competitors and assessment
Company assessmentOthers
- Lightstone: South African property data, valuations, and analytics provider. Adjacent ecosystem participant supplying property intelligence used by mortgage originators including ooba and its bank partners.
Direct peers
- Hippo.co.za: South African financial services and insurance comparison platform that offers home, car, and life insurance comparisons. Comparable business model of free-to-consumer multi-provider comparison with commission-based revenue, and overlapping customer base in SA personal finance.
- CompareGuru: South African comparison marketplace for insurance and financial products. Operates the same comparison/broker model across insurance and some personal finance products, targeting the same SA consumer demographic as ooba's broader financial services offering.
- BetterBond: South Africa's other major home loan comparison service and direct competitor to ooba, operating a similar multi-bank bond origination model with relationships across the same major SA banks. Direct head-to-head rival for first-time buyer market share.
Broad incumbents
- Aussie Home Loans: Australian retail mortgage broker with branch network and aggregation across 20+ lenders. Long-established multi-bank broker model comparable to ooba's maturity in South Africa.
- LendingTree: US-based publicly-traded online lending exchange that matches consumers with multiple lenders across mortgage, personal, and other loan products. Same multi-lender comparison business model at scale, the closest international analogue to ooba's mortgage platform.
- Sanlam / Old Mutual (SA Insurance arms): Major South African insurance and financial services groups with home, life, and investment products overlapping with ooba's insurance subsidiary. Broad incumbents against which oobaInsure competes in the SA personal insurance market.
- Mortgage Choice: Australian mortgage broker franchise network, majority-owned by REA Group, that aggregates home loan offerings from multiple lenders for consumers. Comparable broker/multi-lender model serving a developed housing market.
Emerging players
- Habito: UK digital mortgage broker and lender using tech-driven matching and advisory to help consumers find home loans. Comparable online-first broker model with focus on UX and digital pre-qualification, though operating in a different geography.
- Trussle: UK online mortgage broker with automated lender matching and ongoing rate-monitoring service. Comparable tech-enabled broker approach targeting consumer self-service, though at smaller scale.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Customer concentration
ooba social profiles
Digital presenceooba financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
ooba leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
ooba subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
ooba funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors1 record
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
ooba M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about ooba
What does ooba do?
ooba is a South African bond originator and home loan comparison service that submits a single home loan application on behalf of a consumer to multiple banks (ABSA, FNB, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Investec, Sentinel Homes) and helps the customer compare quotes and negotiate the best interest rate. The service is free to the consumer, with revenue earned as commission from the banks on successfully settled bonds. Adjacent offerings under the ooba group include insurance brokerage, solar financing, and personal loans.
Is ooba a public or private company?
ooba is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was ooba founded?
ooba was founded in 1998. It employs 251 to 500 people.
Where is ooba based?
ooba is headquartered in Cape Town, South Africa, in the Africa region.
How does ooba make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Bank Commission (Transaction Fee) is the primary driver. The others are estate Agent Referral Rewards.
Who are ooba's main competitors?
Lightstone is listed as an others. Direct peers are Hippo.co.za, CompareGuru and BetterBond. Broad incumbents are Aussie Home Loans, LendingTree, Sanlam / Old Mutual (SA Insurance arms) and Mortgage Choice. Emerging players are Habito and Trussle.
Does ooba have an API?
No public API is recorded for ooba.
What industry is ooba in?
ooba's product category is Mortgage Brokerage. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSALAAAI, Government-Insured Mortgage Origination (FHA/VA/USDA). Its NAICS code is 522310 and its SIC code is 6162.