Luupa is in the running: help us bring it home
Luupa has entered the 2026 South African Startup Awards, and public voting is open right now, until 6 November. Your vote helps decide whether we make the shortlist of five in our category.
If you've ever paid rent on time, every month, and watched it count for nothing on your credit record, this one's for you. Here's who we are, why we entered, and how to vote in under a minute.
The problem: your biggest bill doesn't count
For most South African renters, rent is the largest payment they make every month. Yet that track record is usually invisible to credit bureaus.
Pay your phone contract or a store card, and it builds your credit history. Pay R8,000 in rent on time for three years, and you can still be treated like you have no history at all. That makes it harder to get a home loan, a car, or even a better lease, especially for young people and first-time earners.
How Luupa works
Luupa turns rent you already pay into credit history you can use, all on WhatsApp. No new app to download, no complicated forms.
- Chat to Luupa on WhatsApp. Tenants sign up in the app they already use every day.
- Verify your rent payment. Luupa validates each payment, so there's a trusted record that it was made and when.
- Earn rewards. Paying on time unlocks rewards, so good habits pay off now, not only later.
- Build your credit profile. Validated payment records are shared with credit bureaus, so your rent finally counts towards your credit history.
We built it WhatsApp-first because that's where South Africans already are. Meeting tenants there keeps it simple, fast and data-light.
Why we entered
The South African Startup Awards, run by Startup Club ZA, are in their fourth year and recognise the country's most promising early-stage tech startups. Last year's edition drew 221 entries and more than 4,000 verified public votes.
We entered because credit access shouldn't depend on which bills you happen to pay. A national stage helps us reach more tenants, landlords and partners who can make rent count for millions of South Africans.
Winners will be announced at a live awards night in Cape Town in mid-November, also streamed nationally.
Vote for Luupa: it takes 60 seconds
Voting closes on 6 November 2026. Here's how:
- Go to startupclubza.com/awards/vote/luupa.
- Cast your vote for Luupa.
- Share this post on WhatsApp, LinkedIn or X and ask three friends to vote too.
Every vote helps put rent-based credit on the national map. Thank you for backing us, and for backing every renter who deserves credit for paying on time.