NAIROBI, Kenya, Jan 9 – At the junction of Mountain View Estate, Nairobi, sits Cyrus Wambugu at his grocery shop. He has put up banners written ‘Hustler Fund Ambassador’.
Wambugu started his business in 2016, the first commodity he sold was roasted maize for a period of two years after which he transitioned to fruits and vegetables.
He tells Capital News that he used Sh200 to start his business with a small shed that has now transformed into a kiosk with sitting space.
To grow his business, Wambugu borrowed from banks, SACCOs, shylocks and sometimes took stock from the market on credit terms.
“For the past four years I have been switching my loan options between the four, the shylocks were the worst as they used to use threats to get their money back,” he says.
The Hustler Fund launched on November 30 came as a welcome initiative for Wambugu, who now borrows from it daily to run his business.
“The Hustler Fund has really supported my business since December, I borrow Sh800 daily and get a boost in my daily spend, I then repay with an interest of 35 cents, which is the lowest interest I have ever paid for a loan,” Wambugu said.
The 24-year-old says he is hoping to grow his limit which has remained at Sh800 for the past one month.
“The President has assured us that if you are a good borrower your loan limit will be increased and I can’t wait for it to get to even Sh5,000 for I know my business will really benefit,” he said.
He lauded the Sh50 billion Hustler Fund, saying it is a good initiative saying the 8 per cent interest rate was unrivaled coupled with the fact that one doesn’t need guarantors or credit history review to get the loan.
Wambugu urged Kenyans to avoid the negative sentiments on the Hustlers Fund and especially urged the youth who are struggling with unemployment to apply for the loan to grow themselves.
“If I started my business with Sh200 and I have grown my business to where it is now someone who borrows the minimum limit of Sh500 can build a bigger business,” he said.
The Hustler Fund unveiled on November 30 2022 had as at January 8, 2023 disbursed Sh13.5 billion with Sh5.8 billion already repaid.
Over 17 million customers had opted into the Hustler Fund, transacting Sh23,090,600. The number of repeat customers stood at 4,971,502.
President William Ruto has urged Kenyans to ignore calls by Azimio leaders who want them to default on the Hustler Fund as he plans to unveil phase two.
The Head of State said the fund has been hugely successful and is ready to move to the next phase.
“When we launched this fund, a lot of politicians told Kenyans to take the money and not repay back, telling them that it’s useless. But today the money that is being repaid is more than that being borrowed,” the President said.
The loan limits for individuals from the fund were set at a minimum of Sh500 and a maximum of Sh50, 000.
Ruto pointed out that in February the government will launch Phase II of the Fund which will cater to Sacco’s and other small institutions.
The second phase is to give Kenyans in finance groups an equal opportunity to borrow at a small interest to boost their businesses.
The fund is expected to have a total of four products: Personal Finance (which has already been launched), Micro-Loan, SME Loan and Start-Up Loan.
To be eligible, one must be at least 18 years old, have a national identity card and a registered SIM card and mobile money account with Safaricom, Airtel or Telkom.
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