M-KOPA unlocks $600 million in credit for underbanked customers

M-KOPA, the fintech platform that provides digital credit to underbanked customers, in its 2021 Impact Report stated that it unlocked $600 million of credit for customers.

The report also presents findings on M-KOPA’s smartphone, solar, and cash loan customers across Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, and Ghana. While much of the impact has been realised in East Africa, the company says it recorded rapid growth following its expansion into West Africa over 2020/21.

“4.5 million lives improved with life-changing products, over one million solar home systems sold, avoiding two million tonnes of CO2 emissions, over one million individuals accessing high-quality smartphones, enabling access to information and earning opportunities online, 86 percent of customers report that the quality of their lives has improved because of M-KOPA,” the report shows.

Read also: Africa Data Centres joins forces with Nigeria’s top internet exchange point

Despite the whirlwinds of economic uncertainty caused by COVID-19, throughout 2020 and 2021 M-KOPA says it defied global trends and created significant-high-quality employment. The fintech company’s full-time staff more than doubled from 2019 to 2021, with 944 additional jobs created.

Additionally, M-KOPA sales agents, who actively reach community members across the company’s core markets, grew to 10,000 agents between 2019 and 2021.

Founded in 2011, M-KOPA offers millions of people access to life-enhancing products and services, such as smartphones, solar lighting, solar-powered appliances, cash loans, and health insurance by unlocking affordable credit.

In March 2020, the platform reached a milestone of 2 million customers served, and with impact and inclusion remaining core to its mission, M-KOPA says it is on a mission to increase the number of customers on its platform by 10 times over the next five years.