Church-owned microfinancier SMEP Bank is set to upgrade its banking system to enable mobile phone-based lending.
The firm will also start lending to Safaricom’s #ticker:SCOM M-Pesa agents so that they can buy float (operating cash) as it targets to ease cash management for the agents.
SMEP which has 18 banking branches and 22 marketing units’ countrywide plans to operationalise the mobile phone-based lending by June this year.
“We are heavy on mobile banking and this year we are planning to upgrade our systems to enable us lend through mobile banking – auto credit scoring,” said SMEP chief executive Symon Kamore.
In 2011, SMEP launched the mobile banking system and customers are able to withdraw, check balance, transfer funds and get mini-statements using their mobile phones.
The microfinancier is a super-agent of Safaricom — it sells float to the telco’s M-Pesa agents through its banking branches.
Mr Kamore added the bank will now go slow on infrastructure development.
“During the formative years we invested heavily in setting up banking branches and we were also heavy in building the systems, and I think now we have achieved a substantial level of that,” said Mr Kamore.
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