Solv Kenya and Cellulant Partner to Offer MSME Payment and Collection Services
Solv Kenya, an MSMEs-focused B2B digital platform and the leading Pan-African payments provider, Cellulant have entered into a financial services partnership that will enable Solv Kenya’s expanding MSME partners to access digital payment and collections services offered by Cellulant according to a press release by the company yesterday.
This comes just a month after Solv began commercial operations in Kenya. The partnership will equally allow MSMEs using the Solv Kenya platform to reconcile, receive, and view all payments on the go under one roof.
Speaking on what the partnership means for Solv Kenya, Sheila Kimani-Omukuba, CEO of Solv Kenya noted that the partnership will enable efficient and seamless transactions for the various business enterprises participating in the SOLV marketplace. “Processing and tracking transactions have historically been a problem for many small businesses and financial institutions have to deal with this gap. This partnership gives us the chance to handle financial services more quickly and effectively to support their daily operations which support our goal of utilizing digital capabilities to enhance MSMEs’ profitability, enable growth, and operational efficiency.”
Also, the startup claims to have 5,000 MSMEs and over ten multinational corporations on board, and it hopes to sign up 10,000 businesses by the end of the year.
What you should know about Solv and Cellulant Partnership
Cellulant joins as a payments technology partner, connecting these MSMEs to the rails that allow them to make and receive payments.
While David Waithaka Cellulant’s Group Chief Revenue Officer on his part said “Over the last couple of years, the uptake of our products has increased significantly as we continue to provide SMEs across Africa with both online and offline payment solutions. By offering multiple frictionless payment methods, businesses can realize increased sales and a growing customer base. Today, we’re excited to partner with Solv to avail these solutions to MSMEs on their platform and work together for their growth.”
Kenyan MSMEs, like those in other African countries, remains an untapped market for digital payments despite being a major economic driver.
Micro, Small, Medium-Enterprises (MSMEs) employ over 15 million people in Kenya, according to a 2021 report released by the Kenya Bankers Association. The sector also contributes significantly to supporting livelihoods and driving growth in the Kenyan economy. Despite this, they struggle with access to finance, which is primarily due to financiers’ limited and ambiguous information about their operations.
Stressing the business opportunity lack of access to finance by MSMEs in Kenya has created, Faith Nkatha, Cellulant’s Country Manager in Kenya said “The access challenge of to financing for MSMEs has ripple effects across the economy. We’re going beyond offering payment solutions – pairing payment processing with other solutions to offer increased value to businesses. This is an important partnership for us at Cellulant as it speaks directly to our goals – enabling seamless payments thereby accelerating economic growth across Africa.”
Other Partners
Additionally, Cellulant is the latest addition to Solv Kenya’s growing portfolio of partners. Solv Kenya has signed working partnerships with several corporations in the last three months of its pilot, including BAT, Diageo, Procter and Gamble, Lafarge, Nestle, and Nokia. Faulu Bank, Gulf African Bank, Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, Asante MFI, and Zanifu MFI are among the financiers, with more partners from various sectors on the way.
The platform aims to provide over 100,000 Kenyan MSMEs with access to funding through its supply chain financing solution by issuing over $82 million in working capital credit each year.