Jijenge CEO Peter Macharia. PHOTO | Wanyiri kahito | NMG
A local micro-lender is banking on its one-hour loan processing time to attract mass patronage.
Mobile-based Jijenge Credit says it only needs one’s identification card and an M-Pesa statement to process a request.
“We
have also eliminated all legal aspects in emergency loan products,
apart from the basics. This is part of our new strategy to be able to
serve our customers better,” says Mr Peter Macharia, Jijenge managing
director.
Repayment schedules can be weekly or monthly
with settlement time ranging from three months to one year. Jijenge
Credit’s new business model is tailored for the masses.
“Most of their (customer) financial needs are usually of an
emergency nature such as medical emergency, school fees and other
pressing domestic needs,” says Mr Macharia.
The firm
has also gone big in motor vehicle asset financing, where a client
identifies a vehicle and deposits either 20 per cent, 30 per cent or 50
per cent of the total cost and Jijenge Credit pays the balance.
The
interest on asset finance, Mr Macharia says, depends on the usage of
the vehicle. “A personal car attracts lower interest rates than a
passenger service vehicle,” he says.
Their logbook
loans facility provides 60 per cent of the total value of the vehicle.
Jijenge loans attract 1 per cent interest rates on a reducing balance.
The
firm joins a host of other mobile money lending mobile apps such as
Tala, Branch and Mshwari, which have won popularity among Kenyans.
According
to the Central Bank of Kenya, Kenyans transacted as much as Sh9.2
billion daily through real-time mobile-based payments in 2016.
In
all, Sh3.4 trillion was moved via mobile money last year alone, an
increase from the Sh2.8 trillion in 2015. The rise has been attributed
to a jump in the uptake of mobile loans.
While
mobile banking apps, like the ones from Kenya’s top tier financial
institutions such as KC and Equity also have loan facilities, there are
other applications that are available to users that are purely meant for
facilitating mobile loans.
It is these apps that top the list of Android-based finance apps in Kenya as can be seen in the list below.
Tala
(formerly Mkopo Rahisi – Kiswahili for “easy loans”), Branch and Saida,
are the top Android applications in the finance category in Kenya.
In
addition to their existing branches in Nairobi, Kiambu Road and Nakuru,
Jijenge plans to open new branches in Eldoret, Mombasa, Thika, Embu,
Meru and Nyeri. The firm says its Mombasa branch will be next to Mombasa
Port.
No comments :
Post a Comment