Dutch Good Growth Fund – Financing Local SMEs is partnering with Zanifu for a 36-month initiative to expand inventory financing for underserved micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in Kenya, with a strong focus on gender inclusion.
Image: © Zanifu
Zanifu uses mobile technology and data-driven credit scoring to provide loans to retailers and distributors, helping businesses that lack access to traditional banking. DGGF will be the first institutional lender to provide local currency debt at market rates, a step expected to attract future investors and show that inventory financing can work for the large informal MSME sector.
This partnership fits well with DGGF’s goals because Zanifu offers a scalable model that integrates financing into supply chains, making credit easier to access. So far, it has supported over 16,000 MSMEs, 83% located in rural areas, and nearly half of its clients are women. Showing Zanifu is actively working towards international gender standards.
Through this cooperation, we aim to learn how fintech can be used most effectively to make financing widely available. A key focus will be testing whether working through distributors to identify potential investees and check their creditworthiness is a strong and sustainable approach. We also want to understand how well tech-based inventory financing can grow in East African markets and what factors will help this model scale effectively.
The fund aims to reach a minimum size of USD 10 million within the next two years and a target of USD 25 million within five years.
Investment
DGGF commits a USD 2 million loan, of which USD 1 million subject to milestone completion.
Sector
Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) and Informal Retail.