Gone are the days when access to smartphones was limited due to the lack of the full purchase price, thanks to Lipa Mdogo Mdogo service.
Lipa Mdogo Mdogo, which translates to “pay little by little,” is a financing model that allows customers to acquire devices through small, regular instalments.
The service has gained traction as consumers seek affordable ways to access smartphones for communication, digital payments, online business, and other services.
Data from the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) 2024 FinAccess Household Survey shows that the number of people using Lipa polepole services rose from 579,242 in 2021 to 1,751,994 in 2024, reflecting a significant expansion in the market.
Under the plan, customers pay an initial deposit to acquire a smartphone and clear the remaining balance through daily, weekly or monthly instalments, lowering the upfront cost of owning a device.
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Customers who fail to meet their repayment obligations automatically lose access to their devices. Financing providers install software that enables them to monitor and remotely restrict financed smartphones when payments fall behind schedule.
Once a device is locked, its owner is unable to use it until the outstanding instalment is paid and access is restored under the provider’s terms.
M-KOPA’s device-locking technology
Among the companies operating in this market is M-KOPA, a digital financial services provider that enables customers to acquire smartphones and pay in manageable instalments.
Behind this business is KilpiTek, a Finnish software and IT consulting company whose technology enables M-KOPA to remotely manage and lock financed devices when customers fall behind on repayments.
KilpiTek specialises in mobile and Internet of Things (IoT) endpoint management, remote device-locking solutions and artificial intelligence-driven security.
Its software has been instrumental in supporting M-KOPA’s pay-as-you-go smartphone financing model by allowing the company to restrict the use of devices linked to overdue instalments.
M-KOPA acquires KilpiTek in Sh1 billion deal
M-KOPA has acquired 100 per cent of KilpiTek’s voting shares in a transaction valued at $8 million (about Sh1.04 billion), bringing the technology behind its smartphone-locking system directly under its control.
According to the company’s financial disclosures, the acquisition, completed in March 2026, involved a combination of cash and equity consideration.
The deal gives M-KOPA direct control of the device-locking software as demand for lipa mdogo mdogo smartphones continues to grow.
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