Credit Management Strategies and Sustainability of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya

Abstract

The sustainability of the rapid emergence and uptake of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya is worrying; Majority of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya deal with personal loans which are unsecured and therefore lenders charge a higher interest rate because of the higher risk nature of their customers and thereafter use aggressive debt collection techniques, this have led to calls from the general public, policy-makers and the CBK for the regulation of Digital Lending Applications. If the current status continues where millions of Kenyans are listed with CRB it will be to the detriment of Digital Lending Applications investors who will lose their investments and it will eventually lead to closing down of Digital Lending Applications which will be a backward trend to the innovative and inclusive idea Digital Lending Applications bring to Kenyans in comparison to the traditional financial institutions. The main objective of this study was to look at the credit management strategies of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya and how they affect the sustainability of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya. This study employed descriptive research design techniques in collecting, analysing, interpreting and presenting the information. Descriptive research design showed the relationship between credit management strategies and sustainability of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya. The study‟s population was the Digital Lending Applications listed in the android software that are operating in Kenya. The study collected both primary and secondary data based on the objectives of the study. Data collection started by obtaining a letter from the Kenyatta University introducing the researcher to the lending firms. The letter was used to accompany the questionnaires and interview guides for data collection, the respondents were the loan appraisal officers, credit staff and accounting staff employed by the Digital Lending Applications in Kenya. The collected data was analysed using Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) and Microsoft excel programs, inferential statistics were applied, and multiple regressions employed to test the relationship between credit management strategies and sustainability of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya. Figures and tables were used to present the data. The study found that credit appraisal strategies positively and significantly influences sustainability of Digital Lending Applications in Kenya; pricing strategies positively and significantly influence sustainability and that debt collection strategies positively and significantly influence sustainability. The recommendation of the study is that Digital Lending Applications in Kenya should improve their client appraisal techniques to lower their non-performing loans. Having a well-performing loan portfolio will improvement their financial performance and hence their sustainability. Digital Lending Applications in Kenya have incurred loan losses through lenient standards of lending. The study thus recommends Digital Lending Applications in Kenya to improve the way they deal with risk accruing from credit by improving their credit risk controls; this can be done by having an updated assessment database with a profile of prospective and current borrowers and guarantors, it should show a of history repayment patterns and cash flow records of the borrower. The database can be shared among financial institutions and other lending companies to be used during the credit appraisal process; this can improve the quality of their loan books.