Gikomba Market, one of Nairobi’s busiest open-air trading hubs, begins to stir long before sunrise.
While the city is still quiet, traders are already arriving, dragging handcarts loaded with bales of second-hand clothes, sacks of shoes, or piles of household items.
Despite its energy and economic importance, some of the traders grapple with serious challenges that have limited the growth of their enterprises.
For Mary Wanjiru, a 34-year-old clothing retailer who has operated in the market for close to seven years, the main challenge is never a lack of customers but accessible and reliable financing.
“There are days you see demand rising, but your money is tied up in unpaid orders or slow-moving stock,” she says. “That’s where many business people get stuck.”
It is a situation many micro and small entrepreneurs across Kenya understand all too well. And increasingly, Wanjiru says, her turning point came through NCBA Bank’s Stawi facility, a digital financial solution built for business owners who need structured banking and accessible credit without the traditional hurdles.
The business lady recalls hearing about Stawi from fellow traders who were using it not just to borrow but also to separate business money from personal spending.
“I realised most of my problems came from mixing business money with home expenses,” she admits. “With Stawi, I opened an account using my phone. No branch, no paperwork. It was straightforward.”
Stawi provides entrepreneurs with a digital business account that allows them to manage payments and collections while building a financial profile that can unlock access to credit.
For many small traders who operate outside formal banking systems, the ability to establish an account and transact digitally is proving critical.
The account can also be linked seamlessly with M-PESA, enabling users to move money in and out easily, a feature Wanjiru says has improved how she manages daily operations.
“Instead of holding cash, I deposit into the Stawi account and transfer when I need to restock. It feels safer and more organised,” she says.
For years, the single mother of two had unsuccessfully tried to access business loans from different lenders due to challenges such as limited records and a lack of collateral.
“Some places wanted bank statements, audited records, and assets. I’m a small trader. I don’t have assets to use as security,” she explains.
That reality is one of the reasons Stawi has gained traction among Kenya’s entrepreneurs. The facility is designed to offer easier access to credit, especially for business owners who may not have proper financial records or assets to support borrowing.
Through Stawi, eligible users can access long-term instant loans ranging from Sh50,000 to Sh250,000, depending on their loan limit.
Repayment can be structured from one month up to 12 months, allowing borrowers to match repayment with business cycles.
Wanjiru says her first Stawi loan was Sh80,000.
“I used it to add more stock during the December rush. That season is everything in business. If you miss it, you wait another year,” she says.
The interest rate, she adds, was manageable compared to what she had seen in the market.
“At 9 percent per annum, it felt fair. You can plan. It is not like those loans that grow every day until you panic.”
Stawi members access loans at 9 percent per annum, with a one-time facility fee of 4 percent of the loan amount, an insurance fee of 0.7 percent, and excise duty of 20 percent on the facility fee.
For many business owners, loans are often used to plug short-term gaps. But Wanjiru says her experience with Stawi has been about growing sustainably.
“The first loan helped me increase stock. The second time, I borrowed Sh150,000 and used it to diversify,” she says.
She introduced children’s clothing and imported denim lines, products that tend to sell fast and generate steady cash flow. Within months, her daily revenue increased.
“Before, I was doing around Sh3,000 to Sh5,000 a day. On good days now, I can hit Sh8,000,” she says.
She attributes the improvement not only to access to credit but also to the discipline that comes with using a structured business account.
“When you have a digital account showing your transactions, you start taking business seriously. You track payments. You see where money goes,” she notes.
Who Stawi is Designed For
Stawi targets a broad segment of Kenyan entrepreneurs, including both formal and informal businesses. It is available to:
- Registered Kenyan citizens
- Unregistered business owners with business permits or sole proprietorship registration
- Formally registered companies
- Both banked and unbanked businesses
- Businesses with a turnover of Sh50,000 to Sh250,000
For loan qualification, a borrower must have a Kenyan ID, a valid business permit, be a fully registered Stawi customer, maintain the required monthly turnover, and have no negative CRB listing.
Registration is done digitally through the Stawi app available on the Google Play Store. Customers are required to provide various identification details, including a mobile number, a valid Kenyan ID or passport, a personal photo, a valid business permit, and a valid email address.
Many entrepreneurs operate in cash-heavy environments, where business growth is often limited by lack of financing rather than lack of opportunity.
Stawi’s appeal, according to Wanjiru, lies in its simplicity and its alignment with how Kenyan businesses operate today; digitally, quickly, and often without formal financial paperwork.
While she is careful to note that borrowing requires discipline, she believes Stawi has offered a more structured and predictable alternative to informal lending.
“You must repay, and you must plan. But if you use it well, it can change your business,” she says.
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