REGULATION | Kenyan Fintech, Tende Pay, Secures PSP License from the Central Bank of Kenya

Tende Pay, a leading digital payment solution, has secured approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to operate as a licensed Payment Service Provider (PSP).

With this license, Tende Pay can now process and settle payments for merchants, further strengthening Kenya’s digital payments ecosystem.

“We are excited to receive this authorization, which enables us to expand our payment solutions across Kenya. We appreciate the CBK for fostering local fintech innovation and creating an enabling regulatory framework,” said Abel Masai, CEO of Tende Pay.

Founded in 2020, Tende Pay offers a robust spend management platform that puts business owners and managers in control. Its suite of digital tools supports petty cash management, bulk payouts, salary processing, payment disbursement, reconciliations, and seamless integration with ERPs and accounting systems.

The platform supports one-off payments, recurring transactions, and subscription services via M-PESA, bank transfers, and paybill integrations. It also facilitates bulk payments for casual employees and airtime disbursements.

The solution is ideal for microfinance institutions (MFIs), distributors, contractors, logistics companies, accountants and micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), as well as other organizations managing frequent disbursements. It offers a secure, automated platform that streamlines financial transactions, enhances oversight, and optimizes business expenditure management.

According to local reports, Tende Pay now helps approximately 1,000 SMEs automate their payments and operations, reducing reliance on manual cash handling and allowing business owners to separate personal finances from business income. This separation provides clearer financial insights, improving business performance and reducing the risk of failure.

“We started with just petty cash, then realised that SMEs still need their management works to understand how they are performing, their profits and balance sheets. That is how we added the ERP integration.

We also added invoices when we identified the need to factor in the fact that the businesses are selling goods and services,” said Susan Akinyi, the commercial lead for corporate and partnerships at Tende Pay.

According to local reports, less than 10% of Kenyan SMEs are digitized and fewer than 400,000 businesses use Safaricom’s LIPA NA M-PESA till numbers as of March 2023. Digital payments players see this as a major opportunity for growth.

Kenya has over seven million MSMEs, but fewer than two million are formally registered, highlighting the untapped potential for financial inclusion and digital transformation.

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