By Elijah Odhiambo
An agricultural digital platform Tawi Fresh Kenya Limited and financing Platform Solv Kenya, have received Ksh413 million from Standard Chartered Plc targeting business payments and agriculture segments of the two e-commerce units.
In its annual report for 2022, the British multinational bank disclosed that it has set aside capital amounting to Ksh295.8 million in its trade financing platform Solv Kenya, which trades under its local subsidiary Solvezy Technology Kenya Limited.
The lender has additionally wired Ksh118.14 million to Tawi Fresh Kenya Limited.
Tawi Fresh Kenya is an agriculture digital marketplace that connects farmers directly to produce buyers, mainly hotels, restaurants, caterers, schools and hospitals.
Solv, a digital platform dealing in ventures, innovation and fintech investments was first introduced in India in December 2020. It was later launched in Kenya last year.
It makes it possible for enterprises to access funding based on their transaction history with suppliers without necessarily needing a collateral.
According to the financiers 2022 annual report, the e-commerce marketplace served more than 230, 000 Kenyan and Indian customers last year.
“In India and Kenya, we have set up Solv, an e-commerce marketplace for small and medium-sized enterprises, which served over 230,000 customers in 2022,” Standard Chartered Plc said in its 2022 annual report.
The report indicates that the Ventures continues to invest in potentially transformational business models and ecosystems, connecting more and more clients with economic opportunity.
How the Solv platform works.
The Solv Kenya venture which focuses on funding small traders who are approved by large suppliers enables customers to access loans through the platform that are spent on buying stock for their businesses.
For one to borrow from the platform:
- They should be nominated by suppliers
- They are required to digitally provide personal IDs, business permits, and their photos as part of the approval process.
Advantages of Solv Kenya
Solv bridges the gap that MSMEs have of getting slim chances of accessing bank loans. It fills the gap by bringing anchors and their retail ecosystem to a digital marketplace, enhancing credit worthiness and providing access to multiple financial institutions that offer financing solutions based on the MSME’s risk profile from which the MSME can then select the right option for them.
In addition to providing access to multiple financial institutions, the full-stack platform empowers businesses by providing access to new markets within Kenya as well as helping to resolve key operational challenges.
