Lack of access to financial services is a challenge that many Kenyans continue to grapple with. Despite the country being celebrated for performing well in deepening financial inclusion, many people remain excluded from the formal financial services sector.
In particular, accessing credit from the mainstream commercial banks is a herculean task for customers without collateral such as title deeds and logbooks.
Okolea loan app is renowned as a Kenyan credit enterprise that has been on the forefront in providing instant loans to Kenyans to cater to business and personal financial needs.
This has seen the app become a leading player in the market due to its responsible lending culture and sizable limits to its diverse clientele.
Okolea customers, previously, could only get their loans sent to their M-Pesa wallets. However, M-Pesa limits the maximum amount of loan disbursed per person to Sh250,000.
The firm's CEO Peter Muraya said customers previously limited with the M-Pesa cap would now find it easier to receive their loans.
"We created the banking option to solve this problem on top of giving our customers more choice regarding where they would want to receive their money. This is particularly useful to business people who use cheques to pay suppliers." he said.
The credit enterprise has previously allowed their customers to borrow up to three times, but within their assigned limit, a feature meant to encourage customers to only borrow what they need at a time.
“Okolea recognises responsible lending is key for sustainable growth and launched multiple loans to ensure clients borrow only what they need at a time. This feature has proven popular leading it to be adopted now leading banks and telecoms,” Muraya said.
Mobile loan apps have become popular among Kenyans due to their accessibility, flexibility and efficiency in granting loans.
Research by FSD Kenya says about 6.5 million Kenyans are digital borrowers who borrow to meet basic needs as well as replenish stocks in small businesses. This clearly shows digital lenders such as Okolea have a role to play in deepening financial inclusion in Kenya and beyond.
A market overview of Mobile Loans in Kenya report by Credit Info last year showed that 74.5 per cent of the borrowers had between two to six mobile loans at any given time.
Marketing manager, Okolea International Limited
