Standard Bank and banking technology company JUMO have collaborated to offer an innovative financing solution that will allow Ugandan entrepreneurs with restricted access to funding to obtain credit for business growth. This effort is projected to have a positive influence on local communities by creating jobs, since an annual study of JUMO platform users shows that 50% of micro-SMEs employ at least one additional person.
The combined financing project includes a custom asset-backed securitization (ABS) system that gives entrepreneurs rapid access to cheaper credit rates using their mobile phones. This ABS debt-financing process can be replicated in many geographies and marketplaces where both parties operate. Powered by AI and machine learning, JUMO’s intelligent banking technology platform provides cash invested in the ABS framework to a new class of financially disadvantaged customers. Standard Bank, as the senior facility provider, benefits from well-defined recovery values and times, which credit enhancement procedures protect.
“This landmark transaction is the first milestone in developing a strategic relationship with JUMO to provide unbanked microbusinesses and individuals across Sub-Saharan Africa with access to finance,” said Justine Crommelin, Senior Vice President of Debt Capital Markets and Securitizations at Standard Bank.
JUMO founder and CEO Andrew Watkins-Ball added, “We are proud to work with Standard Bank in another exciting first for financial inclusion. This partnership meets the growing global demand for ESG investment opportunities and demonstrates the power of financial technology companies partnering with banks to enhance financial inclusivity and social impact in Africa.”
Standard Bank, trading as Stanbic Bank in Uganda, participates in the ABS structure as the sole arranger and senior lender. The ABS structure is a powerful financing tool that facilitates returns for investors, ecosystem growth, and financial inclusion. “This solution has unlocked a supply of local currency for JUMO, enabling the company to grow its lending presence in Uganda on more sustainable terms,” said Nicholas Gunning, Executive, Head Securitization, Debt Capital Markets at Standard Bank.
“Our intention is to replicate this solution in other African regions where we overlap with JUMO, contributing to the development of local financial markets, mobilizing local currency financing, and enabling JUMO to achieve greater economies of scale in a shorter time period.”
We expect this deal to benefit approximately 500,000 Ugandans, including many first-time borrowers. JUMO provides savings and loan solutions to entrepreneurs in emerging economies, as well as financial services infrastructure to partners including eMoney, mobile fintech platforms, and banks.
“The fintech ecosystem continues to be a major focus for Standard Bank, which has consistently supported the growth of key players in the lendtech, connected finance, payment processing, remittance, and e-commerce subsectors through innovative financing transactions, thereby promoting financial inclusion across the African continent,” said Jiří Chotěborský, Executive Vice President, TMT, CC, Telecoms, Media & Technology.
