Creditinfo picks Kenyan to head East Africa unit

Rating firm Creditinfo has tapped the chief executive of the Kenyan unit Kamau Kunyiha as its new head for East Africa starting September 1.

Mr Kunyiha replaces Seth Marks who will now head the Icelandic firm’s Central and Eastern Europe and affiliates.

“Kamau (Kunyiha) has been a key member of the team running Creditinfo Kenya and I am sure his success will continue as regional head, as part of the process of strengthening our presence in East Africa,” said Paul Randall, the global markets director at Creditinfo Group in a statement yesterday.

Mr Randall said the firm will tap Mr Kunyiha’s experience to grow its business in the region.

“Kamau has over 15 years’ experience in Credit Risk and Information Management Services at senior management level,” said the firm.

Mr Kamau is expected to still hold his position as CEO, the company said.

“He is currently Creditinfo Kenya, CEO for the last four years where he oversaw aggressive client-acquisition through his visionary leadership and strategic thinking.”

Last year, Creditinfo launched a personality-based credit assessment for the Kenyan market.

Mr Kunyiha said at the time the system dubbed Coremetrix Psychometric Module would provide “more accurate credit decisioning and broader access to finance,” because of an additional layer of information on the consumer based on self-reporting and own personality.

The new system was expected to better address key industry challenges, such as individuals with no credit history or with “thin files” in the credit rating bureau (CRB) parlance.

“The integration of innovative credit evaluation solutions based on personality features with a robust credit bureau system such as CBS will enable the Kenyan market to have a tangible competitive advantage in the area of credit,” he said.

“This information, combined with existing data or on its own, provides credit providers, financial service providers, insurance companies and risk managers with an alternative indication of a person’s creditworthiness and suitability for financial products where little formal credit history is available.”