Access Bank and NBK consolidate women-focused banking under new ‘W Initiative’
Access Bank and NBK unify women-focused banking into the W Initiative, targeting the massive credit gap for Kenya’s female entrepreneurs...
✨ Key Highlights
Access Bank Kenya and the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) have launched the “W Initiative”, a unified financial proposition aimed at closing the significant funding gap for women-owned businesses in Kenya by consolidating previous offerings and providing credit, capacity building, and market access.
- Only 7 percent of women-owned MSMEs in Kenya successfully access formal credit, while women-led businesses receive just 36 percent of total lending to the MSME sector.
- George Odhiambo, Managing Director of the National Bank of Kenya, stated the initiative signals their commitment to "dismantling barriers".
- The parent company, Access Bank PLC, has already disbursed $141 million (approx. KES 18.2 Billion) to women across its wider network through this model.
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Banks and Tech Firms Launch New Service and Training Initiatives in Kenya - December 2025
Absa Bank Kenya has launched two innovative customer service models, "Branch on the Move" and "Absa Service Pods," to expand its national presence and improve access to banking services. Similarly, Access Bank Kenya and the National Bank of Kenya (NBK) have launched the “W Initiative”. This is a unified financial proposition aimed at closing the funding gap for women-owned businesses in Kenya. The initiative provides credit, capacity building, and market access. In the technology sector, Zoho's Young Creators Program completed a tour across East Africa, including Kenya, teaching 150 individuals to build apps using low-code platforms and AI with little to no coding knowledge.
