Population
56M
Online population
22.7M
Currency
KES
Population - 56M
At the start of 2024, 29.8% of Kenya’s population lived in urban centres, while 70.2% lived in rural areas.
Internet penetration - 40.8%
There were 22.7M internet users in Kenya at the start of 2024.
In 2023, Kenya had 102 FinTech companies, making up 15% of Africa’s FinTech startups, according to Disrupt Africa’s Finnovating for Africa 2023 report. This ranks Kenya as the third-largest FinTech market in the region.
At the heart of this transformation is the pioneering mobile money platform, M-Pesa, launched in 2007 by Safaricom, Kenya’s leading telecommunications provider. M-Pesa’s success in enabling secure and convenient mobile payments has not only transformed Kenya’s financial landscape but has also served as a global benchmark for mobile money innovation.
Building on the success of M-Pesa, a diverse range of FinTech startups and innovators have emerged, offering innovative solutions to address various financial needs and challenges faced by individuals and businesses in Kenya. From digital lending platforms and peer-to-peer payment systems to investment apps and insurance services, the FinTech ecosystem in Kenya is vibrant and diverse, catering to a wide range of financial requirements.
Despite this remarkable progress, a significant portion of the population still lacks access to essential financial tools and resources. It is against this background that Strathmore University Business School organized the second Annual FinTech Breakfast. This year’s edition brought together more than 100 stakeholders in the Kenyan FinTech space to discuss challenges and opportunities.
Founded in 2010, M-Kopa is a FinTech platform that provides digital financial services to underbanked consumers across Africa. M-Kopa is known for its pay-as-you-go (PAYG) financing model, which allows customers to gradually build ownership of appliances. They start with an initial deposit and make flexible micro-payments. M-Kopa’s platform has provided over $1B in credit. It has enabled 4M customers to access smartphones, solar power, digital loans, and health insurance. It claims a direct sales force of over 30K agents across Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa. M-Kopa has received significant recognition for its growth and impact, having been featured on the Financial Times’ (FT) ‘Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies’ list for three consecutive years.
Founded in 2018 in Kenya, Kwara is a FinTech startup that modernizes credit unions by transforming them into digital banks. The company’s technology makes credit union operations more efficient, allowing them to offer better services to their members. Kwara’s journey began with a focus on Kenyan smallholder farmers and evolved into a comprehensive digital banking platform now serving more than 230 credit unions across four countries and over 200K end clients. In 2023, the company managed an annual transaction volume of €1B. The platform helps credit unions move from outdated paper-based systems to digital processes. It upgrades credit unions’ back-office operations, enabling them to attract new members and create innovative products.
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Kenya Digital Economy BluePrint
The Kenyan Government also launched the Kenya Digital Economy BluePrint, whose vision is to have a digitally empowered citizenry living in a digitally empowered society. Furthermore, CBK introduced the National Payments Strategy 2022–2025. This strategy is designed to achieve the goal of establishing a secure, rapid, efficient, and cooperative payment system that promotes financial inclusion and fosters innovations that are beneficial to Kenyans.
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There are 46 banks in Kenya.