The Co-operative Bank of Kenya has won the Product Innovation of the Year (Africa) award at the Global SME Finance Awards.
The awards, hosted in Johannesburg, South Africa, by the International Finance Corporation and the SME Finance Forum, saw the bank feted for its “full-spectrum approach to MSME (micro, small and medium-sized enterprise) growth“.
Under its MSME offer, the bank has moved beyond traditional lending in favour of a broader digital and financial ecosystem for small businesses, which often struggle to attract finance from risk-averse banks.
Measures include a revolving MSME stock finance offer for retailers and agro-dealers, a set of digital tools for payments and credit, and a focus on women-led businesses. Last year, its M-Coop Cash mobile platform disbursed 2h77bn (£4.4m) in unsecured loans.
The bank has just extended its financing for a firm of young real estate developers to help them grow a mixed-use site in Ruiru, a town in the greater Nairobi metropolitan area.
The Sh110m (£577,000) facility, which includes mortgage, construction and delopment costs, will help Eboss Investments to develop the new Seven Oaks schools, which will be at the heart of a new mixed-use community.
The gated community will include 100 housing units, a commercial hub, sports and children’s play areas and green spaces.
