Norway’s Spenn Technology recently expanded its partnership with the Rwandan unit of Kenya’s Investments & Mortgages (I&M) Bank to allow users of the Spenn mobile application to send money to any financial services provider in Rwanda, including banks and competing mobile money services. The app’s other features include the ability to make purchases, borrow, save and pay bills without need for a bank account. The savings account offers interest at a rate of 4 percent per year. Spenn also offers merchant services and is recruiting agents.
Spenn’s ongoing relationship with I&M Bank Rwanda reportedly has brought hundreds of thousands of customers to the bank. The app is also available in Tanzania and Zambia, although the menu of features varies in those countries.
Founded in 1963, I&M Bank Rwanda has RWF 491 billion (USD 433 million) in assets, a gross loan portfolio of RWF 313 billion (USD 277 million) and customer deposits of RWF 295 billion (USD 260 million) as of March 2023. In addition to Kenya and Rwanda, I&M Bank operates in Mauritius, Tanzania and Uganda.
Founded in 2015, Spenn leverages blockchain technology to offer financial services and news via subsidiaries in seven countries in Europe and Africa plus an affiliate in the Philippines. As of 2022, the firm had 40,000 agents and 1.3 million customers who performed 6 million monthly transactions. For the same year, Spenn reported a net loss of DKK 74 million (USD 11 million).
By Elva Montelongo, Research Associate
Sources and Additional Sources
Verdant Capital press release
https://verdant-cap.com/spenn-completes-strategic-joint-venture-agreement-to-accelerate-its-entry-into-nigeria-2/
Spenn homepage
https://www.spenn.com/
Spenn 2022 annual report
https://investor.spenn.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/03/SPENN-Technology-Annual-Report-22_final-draft-23.03.23-1533-1.pdf
I&M Bank Rwanda webpage
https://www.imbankgroup.com/rw/
I&M Bank Rwanda annual reports
https://www.imbankgroup.com/rw/about-us/annual-reports/
I&M Bank homepage
https://www.imbankgroup.com/
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