The story of Beth Wambui Mwangi, CEO and founder of Mywagepay, embodies resilience, innovation, and purpose. In a continent where small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) contribute up to 40% of GDP, financing remains the Achilles’ heel of their growth. With 65% of Africa’s 44 million SMEs struggling to survive beyond three years due to financing challenges, Mywagepay has emerged as a beacon of hope, redefining access to credit for these underserved businesses in Kenya.
A Vision Born from Crisis
In late 2020, as the COVID-19 pandemic wreaked havoc on global economies, Beth identified a critical gap: businesses and individuals were unable to access affordable credit. This sparked the birth of Mywagepay, a Digital Credit Provider (DCP) that has since revolutionized SME financing in Kenya and is poised for regional expansion.
Reflecting on the company’s inception, Beth recalls, “I developed the idea of starting a financial services company in late 2020 as businesses and individuals were going through challenges accessing affordable credit due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
Following a rigorous pilot phase in 2021, Mywagepay officially launched in 2022, coinciding with the Central Bank of Kenya’s introduction of regulations governing digital credit providers. Unlike many players who struggled to adapt, the company’s customer-first approach and robust preparation ensured it was among the first 10 companies to secure a DCP license.
Despite the successful launch the journey hasn’t been easy for Beth, navigating regulatory challenges, funding difficulties, and operational hiccups were along the way. Yet, every setback has been a lesson that has driven her company to greater heights—empowering SMEs across Kenya and preparing to scale regionally.
Innovative Solutions Tailored for SMEs
Traditional financial institutions have long underserved SMEs due to unwieldy processes, inadequate data, and perceived high risk. Mywagepay has successfully filled this void with innovative, tech-driven solutions like:
- Embed: Provides working capital at the point of need.
- Score Check: Utilizes data analytics and machine learning to evaluate creditworthiness.
- Capital: Offers affordable, quick financing tailored for SME growth.
Beth highlights the company’s value proposition: “Mywagepay fills this gap with innovative products like Embed, Score Check, and Capital, which provide quick, data-driven, and affordable financing solutions.”
These solutions offer quick, data-driven, and affordable financing options. As the financial services landscape undergoes rapid digitization, driven by fintech innovation and advancements like AI and machine learning, The company stays ahead by leveraging technology, building strong partnerships, and adapting to regulatory and economic shifts.
The company tackles key challenges such as data scarcity, credit risk management, and repayment reliability by using data analytics and machine learning through its Score Check product to evaluate creditworthiness.
By leveraging artificial intelligence, Mywagepay has redefined credit scoring and predictive lending, ensuring that SMEs not only access financing but also receive it when and where they need it most. By maintaining close relationships with its customers, Mywagepay ensures its solutions are aligned with their needs while protecting its capital.
Scaling through Partnerships
The aggregator business model is central to Mywagepay’s success. By collaborating with fintechs, payment service providers, and agribusiness aggregators, Mywagepay embeds itself into trusted ecosystems, ensuring scalability and impact.
A standout example is its partnership with Sasapay, a payment service provider. Through the Embed product, Sasapay merchants have gained access to short-term working capital, resulting in a twofold increase in disbursement volumes within months. Similarly, Mywagepay’s collaboration with agribusiness aggregator Pepea Capital has empowered women farmers with input loans, boosting productivity and resilience against climate-related challenges.
“Mywagepay comes in as the financing partner for these agribusiness ventures, ensuring that we embed into an already existing ecosystem that farmers already trust,” Beth explains. “Our solutions integrate social impact metrics into our lending model, ensuring that both business growth and community development go hand in hand. Through our Embed product, Sasapay merchants have gained access to short-term working capital. Within months, this partnership doubled disbursement volumes, demonstrating the scalability and impact of our solutions. Another example is our work with agribusiness aggregators such as Pepea Capital, where we’ve enabled vulnerable groups like women farmers to access affordable loans.”
The fintech firm’s lending model integrates social impact metrics, ensuring that every loan disbursed contributes to community development. By focusing on vulnerable groups such as women farmers, the company not only fosters inclusivity but also strengthens the resilience of agribusiness value chains.
“Balancing financial returns with social impact requires structuring financial products that are both accessible and affordable,” says Beth. “By leveraging partnerships with organizations like Pepea Capital, Mywagepay enables women farmers and small-scale producers to access input loans, which not only improve productivity but also build resilience to climate-related challenges.”
Empowering the Next Generation
Beyond Mywagepay, Beth is passionate about nurturing the next generation of entrepreneurs. As an Africa Berlin Network ambassador and an alumna of the WesterWelle Foundation, she connects African startups, particularly women-led ventures, to the Berlin funding ecosystem. Her initiatives include financial literacy programs for SMEs and supporting digital transformation for small businesses.
As the Treasurer of the Association of Digital Credit Providers, she is at the forefront of driving industry collaboration to enhance financial inclusion across Kenya. She runs a thriving ecommerce ecosystem bringing together buyers and sellers many of whom would otherwise be left out by the larger well-established sites.
The Future of Fintech in Africa
Mywagepay’s sights are firmly set on regional expansion. Plans are underway to extend operations to Tanzania, Uganda, and Rwanda, further bridging the financing gap for SMEs across East Africa.
“I’m most excited about the use of artificial intelligence to improve credit scoring and predictive lending models,” she shares. “Attending conferences like the ESAAMLG Anti-Money Laundering event has opened doors for potential collaborations in the fintech ecosystem.”
Attending industry events, such as the ESAAMLG Anti-Money Laundering conference, has opened new avenues for collaboration and innovation in fintech.
Lessons for Aspiring Entrepreneurs
Beth’s journey underscores the importance of resilience and adaptability in business. “Start small but dream big,” she advises. “Leverage partnerships to scale your reach without significant upfront costs. Use technology to automate and streamline processes, and focus on understanding the needs of your target customers. Most importantly, stay disciplined with your finances—cash flow is king.”
As Mywagepay continues to empower SMEs, it sets the standard for how fintech can drive both financial inclusion and economic growth. For Beth Wambui Mwangi, the mission is clear: “To transform the way SMEs access credit, one partnership at a time, while ensuring that every loan fuels a brighter future for Africa’s entrepreneurs.”
In an era where innovation meets purpose, Mywagepay is not just reshaping Africa’s financial services landscape—it’s building a legacy.