Kibanda TopUp, a B2B platform that connects restaurants to their suppliers, has partnered with Carbon to offer small and medium-sized restaurants access to short-term financing and credit.
It is nearly impossible for restaurant owners on the continent to access unsecured working capital loans. This is because traditional lenders do not have the infrastructure to provide short-term loans to these businesses.
“We are looking beyond changing the logistics for restaurants. Our goal is to create an all-encompassing solution to help restaurants grow, and financial services are an integral part of that”, explained Emilie Blauwhoff, Co-founder and COO of Kibanda TopUp.
By leveraging a restaurant’s transactional data from the Kibanda TopUp platform, Carbon will be able to assess a restaurant’s creditworthiness and issue loans.
“We’re always looking to partner with initiatives that enable us to deliver low-cost and high-value credit to SMEs who are otherwise left out of the traditional financial system. By leveraging digital models to determine creditworthiness, we’re helping small businesses to grow. It’s exciting to help restaurants with the working capital they need, and to build financial services based on their needs.” explained Eliud Mungai, country manager Kenya for Carbon.
The uncertainty inherent in the foodservice industry for small businesses also limits these restaurants’ ability to plan for longer-term investment. Kibanda Topup intends to eventually expand the facility so restaurants can get access to long-term financing.
