Uwezo Microfinance Bank

What Uwezo Microfinance Bank does

Salaam Microfinance Bank Limited, formerly Uwezo Microfinance Bank, is a Sharia-compliant microfinance bank headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya and regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya under the Microfinance Act of 2006. The bank operates as a subsidiary of Salaam Investment Bank and serves three customer segments — Personal Banking (mass retail savers and borrowers), Business Banking (small and medium enterprises), and Corporate Banking — through a nationwide network of physical branches combined with USSD mobile banking on *315# and a newly launched Internet Banking platform. The product portfolio spans savings accounts, personal and business financing, vehicle/auto financing, domestic and international money transfers, ATM card services, foreign exchange, and digital banking. Core technology consists of a Sharia-compliant banking technology platform; no proprietary AI/ML capabilities, APIs, or developer-facing integrations are disclosed.

The bank generates revenue from four streams: profit margins on Sharia-compliant financing activities (auto, business, personal), net interest spread between financing returns and deposit costs, transaction fees on money transfers, ATM services, and forex, and fee income from digital banking transactions. Pricing is quote-based and disclosed via a downloadable Tariff Guide rather than public rate cards. GTM is direct-to-consumer and direct-to-SMB across Kenya, supported by social media presence on Facebook, Instagram, and LinkedIn, content marketing, and participation in community and trade events including the 2025 Kenya-Somalia Trade Week. The bank has been operating for over a decade under its previous identity and completed a strategic rebrand to its current Salaam Microfinance Bank identity in May 2022, joining the Kenya Bankers Association in the same period.

Name

Uwezo Microfinance Bank

Legal name

Salaam Microfinance Bank Limited

Website

https://uwezomfbank.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Salaam Microfinance Bank (formerly Uwezo Microfinance) is a Sharia-compliant, CBK-regulated microfinance bank in Kenya serving retail, SMB, and corporate customers with savings, financing, money transfer, and digital banking services through nationwide branches, USSD, and internet banking.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Microfinance Banking

NAICS

Depository Credit Intermediation (5221), Nondepository Credit Intermediation (5222)

SIC

Personal Credit Institutions (6141), Short-Term Business Credit Institutions (6153)

akta.pro primary industry

Microloans & Working Capital Loans (FSAKAGAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Microfinance, Financial Inclusion & Inclusive Markets (BPAGABAM), Secured Microloans (Community/Nonprofit, Collateralized) (FSAKALAJ)

Keywords

• Microfinance banking
• Sharia-compliant banking
• Microenterprise lending
• Deposit accounts
• Digital banking

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain

Revenue model

1. Interest/Profit Income: The bank generates revenue through Sharia-compliant financing products including auto financing, business loans, and personal financing. As a microfinance institution, revenue is derived from profit margins on financing activities.
2. Deposit Taking: The bank accepts customer deposits and generates income from the spread between lending and deposit rates.
3. Fee-Based Services: Revenue from transaction fees including money transfers, ATM services, forex services, and other banking service charges.
4. Digital Banking Services: Internet banking and mobile banking services generating fee income from digital transactions.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Salaam Microfinance Bank (formerly Uwezo Microfinance Bank) is a Sharia-compliant microfinance bank regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya. It provides savings accounts, Sharia-compliant financing products (auto financing, business financing, and personal financing), money transfer services, ATM services, forex services, and digital banking (USSD *315# and internet banking) to individual consumers, SMEs, and corporate clients nationwide in Kenya.

Product overview

Salaam Microfinance Bank (formerly Uwezo Microfinance Bank) operates as a unified platform offering a comprehensive suite of banking products organized across three customer segments: Personal Banking, Business Banking, and Corporate Banking. The product portfolio includes savings accounts, various financing products including auto financing (Uwezo Auto Financing), money transfer services, ATM services, and Forex services. Digital banking is delivered through USSD (*315#) for mobile transactions and Internet Banking for online access. All products are Sharia-compliant and regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Personal Banking Sharia-compliant banking products and services for individual customers, including savings accounts and personal financing solutions for personal financial goals.
• Business Banking Sharia-compliant business banking products designed for small and medium enterprises, including business financing and deposit products.
• Corporate Banking Flexible and competitive Sharia-compliant banking services for corporate clients, including corporate financing and trade-related banking.
• Uwezo Auto Financing Sharia-compliant vehicle financing product enabling customers to purchase cars with competitive profit rates and flexible repayment schedules.
• Savings Accounts Sharia-compliant savings account products allowing customers to open accounts and save money with the bank.
• Financing Products Various Sharia-compliant financing and loan products to help customers solve financial deficits across personal and business needs.
• Money Transfer Services Domestic and cross-border money transfer services available across branches nationwide.
• ATM Services ATM card services enabling hassle-free transactions at Salaam Bank ATM machines.
• Forex Services Foreign exchange services for currency conversion and international transactions.
• Digital Banking (USSD *315#) Mobile banking via USSD code *315# enabling utility payments, money transfers, Pesalink access, airtime top-up, and balance enquiry.
• Internet Banking Online banking platform allowing customers to access accounts globally for account management and transactions.

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Salaam Investment BankcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSalaam Microfinance Bank is a subsidiary of Salaam Investment Bank company. This parent company relationship provides strategic oversight and brand alignment within the Islamic finance ecosystem.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Kenya Women Microfinance Bank: A leading Kenyan microfinance bank providing savings, credit, and banking services to women entrepreneurs, SMEs, and individuals. It shares the microfinance-bank license, SME-focused lending model, and nationwide distribution focus with Salaam Microfinance Bank.
• Gulf African Bank: Kenya's leading fully Sharia-compliant commercial bank, offering a parallel suite of Islamic personal, business, and corporate banking products. It is the most directly comparable institution to Salaam Microfinance Bank, sharing both the regulatory microfinance/bank category and the niche Islamic-finance positioning in the same Kenyan market.
• SMEP Microfinance Bank: A Kenyan microfinance bank offering deposit products, business loans, and personal financing to SMEs and individuals. Comparable as a direct microfinance competitor targeting similar SME and personal customer segments in Kenya.
• Rafiki Microfinance Bank: A Kenyan microfinance bank offering savings, loans, and digital banking to individuals and SMEs. Directly comparable to Salaam in license type, target segments (SME/personal), and product suite within the Kenyan microfinance market.
• First Community Bank: A Kenyan Sharia-compliant microfinance bank serving individuals, SMEs, and corporate clients with Islamic banking products. Highly comparable to Salaam on both the Sharia-compliance positioning and the microfinance-bank license type within the same domestic market.

Broad incumbents

• Equity Bank Kenya: One of Kenya's largest commercial banks with a strong microfinance and SME heritage, a nationwide branch and agent network, and a sophisticated digital platform. Comparable to Salaam as a broad incumbent operating across all of Salaam's customer segments, but with vastly greater scale.
• Premier Bank Kenya: A mid-sized Kenyan commercial bank offering personal, SME, and corporate banking services. Comparable to Salaam in targeting similar segments in the same market, though operating at a larger scale and with a broader product range.
• KCB Bank Kenya: A leading Kenyan commercial bank offering personal, SME, and corporate banking plus digital channels. Overlaps with Salaam across the full banking value chain but at a much larger scale and broader product breadth.
• NCBA Bank Kenya: A full-service Kenyan commercial bank formed from the merger of National Bank and Commercial Bank of Africa. Comparable to Salaam as a broad incumbent offering personal, business, and corporate banking across Kenya, but at materially larger scale.
• Co-operative Bank of Kenya: A major Kenyan commercial bank with deep SME, personal, and corporate banking franchises. Competes with Salaam for the same personal and SME deposit and lending customers but operates with substantially greater resources and branch density.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookweb.facebook.com/SalaamMFB
• Instagraminstagram.com/salaam_mfb
• Xx.com/UwezoMFB
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/uwezo-microfinance-bank

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Uwezo Microfinance Bank