Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company

What Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company does

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company PLC (KMRC) is a Nairobi-based, non-deposit taking financial institution incorporated on 19 April 2018 under the Companies Act 2015 and licensed and regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya, with the Capital Markets Authority providing oversight over its bond issuance. KMRC operates as a wholesale mortgage refinance company: it extends long-term, fixed-rate credit to participating Primary Mortgage Lenders (PMLs) — including commercial banks and SACCOs — secured by pools of mortgage loans that meet KMRC's eligibility criteria. PMLs assign their interests in the pledged portfolios to KMRC while the loans remain on the PMLs' balance sheets, and any non-performing pledged loan must be replaced by the PML with a performing one, meaning KMRC does not assume direct credit risk on individual mortgages.

KMRC's product set centers on Mortgage Refinancing to PMLs and the downstream KMRC Backed Home Loan, which channel KMRC's liquidity into affordable mortgage products for moderate-to-low income earners via the PML network. The company supplements its wholesale activity with consumer-facing tools — a Home Loan Calculator, an Information Hub, FAQs, and Steps to Home Ownership — that support borrower education. On the funding side, KMRC operates a Corporate Bond Programme with at least two tranches (Tranche 1 ISIN KE7000007760 and Tranche 2) and has received capital from the African Local Currency Bond Fund; its core financial partners include the World Bank Group and the African Development Bank, with additional alignment from Kenya's National Treasury and Economic Planning and Shelter Afrique. KMRC has no proprietary technology platform described in the public materials, no APIs or developer portal, and no disclosed AI/ML capabilities.

Commercially, KMRC runs a B2B2C model with a transaction-fee/spread revenue stream: it earns on the difference between its DFI- and bond-funded cost of capital and the rates charged to PMLs, with specific pricing terms handled bilaterally and not publicly disclosed. It does not market directly to consumers and has no deposit-taking, branch, or retail infrastructure; instead, its 35+ PML partners — spanning major Kenyan banks (ABSA, KCB, Cooperative Bank, NCBA, Standard Chartered, Stanbic, Diamond Trust Bank, Ecobank, Family Bank, I&M, Sidian, Kingdom) and a large SACCO sub-network (Bingwa, Harambee, Kenya Police, Stima, Mwalimu, Tower, Unaitas, and others) — originate mortgages and pass through KMRC-supported funding. KMRC's stated mandate is to deepen Kenya's underpenetrated mortgage market and serve as a key institution in the Government's Affordable Housing Programme.

Name

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company

Legal name

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company PLC

Website

https://kmrc.co.ke

Company type

Private

Founded year

2018

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC) is a Nairobi-based, non-deposit taking financial institution, regulated by the Central Bank of Kenya, that provides long-term wholesale refinancing to 35+ banks and SACCOs (Primary Mortgage Lenders) to expand affordable mortgage lending for moderate-to-low income Kenyan households under the national Affordable Housing Programme.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Nairobi

HQ country

Kenya

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Mortgage Refinancing: KMRC extends credit to its participating Primary Mortgage Lenders (PMLs), secured by mortgage loan portfolio that meet KMRC eligibility criteria. The Company does not acquire or hold mortgage loans in its books neither does it assume any direct credit risk on mortgage loans offered as collateral. The PMLs assign their interests in the mortgage portfolio in favour of KMRC. If a loan pledged to KMRC becomes non-performing, the PML is required to replace it with a performing loan.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC) is a non-deposit taking financial institution that provides long-term refinance facilities to Primary Mortgage Lenders (PMLs), including commercial banks and SACCOs, secured by qualifying mortgage loan portfolios. It does not lend directly to homebuyers; instead, end consumers access KMRC-backed home loans through the participating PML network. KMRC funds these facilities via a corporate bond programme and credit lines from international development finance institutions.

Product overview

Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company (KMRC) operates as a non-deposit taking financial institution offering a focused suite of mortgage-related financial products and tools. The core product is Mortgage Refinancing, where KMRC extends credit to participating Primary Mortgage Lenders (Banks and SACCOs) secured by mortgage loan portfolios. Complementing this, the KMRC Backed Home Loan provides affordable mortgage financing through partner lenders. KMRC also offers a Home Loan Calculator as a digital tool for prospective homebuyers, and operates a Corporate Bond Programme (Tranche 1 and Tranche 2) to raise capital for its lending operations. All offerings are focused on increasing availability of affordable home loans to Kenyans, particularly moderate to low-income earners.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Mortgage Refinancing Facility Wholesale long-term refinance facility extended by KMRC to participating Primary Mortgage Lenders (commercial banks and SACCOs), secured by qualifying residential mortgage loan portfolios. PMLs assign their interest in pledged loans to KMRC while the loans remain on the lender's balance sheet; non-performing pledged loans must be substituted with performing ones.
• KMRC Backed Home Loan Affordable home loan product offered to end consumers through participating Primary Mortgage Lenders (banks and SACCOs), backed by KMRC's long-term refinance liquidity and designed to expand access to mortgage finance for moderate and low-income earners in Kenya.
• Home Loan Calculator Online calculator tool that enables prospective homebuyers to estimate monthly mortgage payments and view an amortization schedule based on home sale price, down payment percentage, payment term, interest rate, and currency selection.
• KMRC Corporate Bond Programme Fixed-rate medium term note programme through which KMRC raises capital markets funding (Tranche 1 ISIN KE7000007760 and Tranche 2) to on-lend to Primary Mortgage Lenders, with Capital Markets Authority oversight over issuance operations.

Named customers33 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Shelter AfriquecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPan-African institution specializing in housing and real estate development. Listed as a key partner supporting affordable housing initiatives in Kenya.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Regional players

• Hong Kong Mortgage Corporation (HKMC): HKMC is a government-owned mortgage refinance and securitization institution in Hong Kong that purchases mortgage loans from authorized institutions. Conceptually analogous to KMRC's wholesale refinance role, but operates in a mature, developed mortgage market with securitization-based funding rather than emerging-market DFI/bond funding.
• Cagamas: Cagamas is Malaysia's national mortgage corporation that purchases mortgage loans from financial institutions to provide liquidity and promote home ownership. It is the closest Asian emerging-market analogue to KMRC's wholesale mortgage refinance model, though serving a more developed Malaysian market.

Broad incumbents

• Federal Home Loan Mortgage Corporation (Freddie Mac): Freddie Mac is a US GSE that buys mortgages from lenders and packages them into MBS, providing liquidity for housing finance. Direct conceptual parallel to KMRC's refinance function, though operating at national scale with securitization-based funding rather than DFI/bond funding.
• Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae): Fannie Mae is a US government-sponsored enterprise that purchases and securitizes residential mortgages from primary lenders, providing liquidity to the US housing market. Same fundamental business — wholesale liquidity provision to primary mortgage originators — but at massive scale and with a securitization focus rather than direct refinance.
• Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation (CMHC): CMHC is Canada's federal Crown corporation and the archetypal mortgage refinance/housing finance institution. It provides mortgage funding, securitization (NHA MBS), and housing policy support. While vastly larger and broader in mandate, its core wholesale liquidity provision to lenders is the same conceptual model KMRC operates in Kenya.

Direct peers

• Tanzania Mortgage Refinance Company: TMRC was established in Tanzania with a mandate very similar to KMRC's: refinancing mortgage portfolios originated by primary lenders (banks and SACCOs) to deepen housing finance in a structurally underpenetrated East African mortgage market. Comparable geography, customer base (banks/SACCOs), and wholesale refinance model.
• Nigeria Mortgage Refinance Company: NMRC is the most directly comparable peer: a wholesale mortgage refinance company in Nigeria, created to provide long-term funding to primary mortgage lenders (banks and mortgage banks) and to deepen housing finance. Like KMRC, it securitizes/refinances mortgage portfolios originated by commercial lenders and targets affordable housing. (Web URL to be verified.)

Emerging players

• Shelter Afrique: Shelter Afrique is a pan-African development finance institution supporting housing and real estate across the continent, listed as a key KMRC partner. While broader than KMRC (project finance, equity, advisory), it overlaps on affordable-housing finance across Africa and shares many of the same institutional funders.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/kmrc_co
• Facebookfacebook.com/kenyamortgagerefinanceco
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/kenya-mortgage-refinance-company

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles17 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

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 Kenya Mortgage Refinance Company