Nigerian fintech Moniepoint Inc. has entered the Kenyan financial market after acquiring a 78% stake in Sumac Microfinance Bank.
The move seeks to deepen credit access for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in East Africa’s largest economy.
The transaction, finalised on Thursday at a reception in Nairobi, grants Moniepoint a deposit-taking licence. This is an essential regulatory requirement for scaling its credit-driven business model in the region.
The acquisition concludes a multi-year push by the company to establish Kenyan operations, following an earlier unsuccessful attempt to enter the market through payments firm Kopo Kopo.
By acquiring a controlling stake in Sumac, a 20-year-old microfinance bank, Moniepoint bypasses Kenya’s current freeze on new licences.
This positions the Nigerian unicorn to compete directly with dominant players such as Safaricom and Equity Group, which have built extensive digital finance ecosystems.
Businesses do important work but are held back by the absence of the right infrastructure for productivity and scale, said Tosin Eniolorunda, founder and CEO of Moniepoint Inc.
Moniepoint is betting its tech-driven lending model can bridge Kenya’s SME credit gap—estimated by the IFC at $19 billion—having processed over $294 billion in annualised transactions in 2025.
Beyond lending, the acquisition signals an ambition to build an integrated merchant ecosystem.
The company recently acquired Orda, a cloud-based restaurant management software provider, and plans to combine its capabilities with Sumac’s banking infrastructure.
This allows Moniepoint to offer a "business-in-a-box" platform that combines inventory management, payroll, and working capital tools within a single system.
The partnership with Moniepoint brings the technological edge and capital required to transform Sumac into a digital-first lender for the modern Kenyan merchant, according to John Njihia, CEO of Sumac Microfinance Bank.
While Sumac remains a niche player in the broader banking sector, its existing branch network and regulatory framework give Moniepoint a ready platform to scale.
Analysts say this model could thrive in Kenya’s digitising commerce sector, acting as a key infrastructure provider for merchants rather than just a traditional lender.
The move marks a key step in Africa’s cross-border fintech expansion, driven by the need for licensing and total ecosystem control, noted the company.
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