EFG Hermes Kenya, the leading brokerage firm in Kenya, has launched an all-new digital onboarding process for its online trading platform, EFG Hermes One Kenya App. The streamlined digital onboarding process is integral to its strategy to promote financial inclusion in Kenya and the frontier markets in which it operates.
Muathi Kilonzo, Head of Equities, Brokerage at EFG Hermes Kenya, commented: “We are pleased to be introducing digital onboarding on our flagship EFG Hermes One app, which falls in line with our strategy to support Kenya’s commitment to digital transformation and broadens domestic and diaspora retail investor participation in the capital markets, therefore boosting market activity. WealthTech platforms have become fundamental to delivering a personalized and engaging client experience from the get-go, allowing new and seasoned investors to create accounts and transact easily and conveniently. People today are looking for solutions to help them grow their disposable income, which creates demand for investment products. Consequently, it is more important than ever to give clients access to an investment platform that grows their wealth and allows them to do so from anywhere.”
With only 1.5 million registered retail investors in a population of over 55 million, the Kenyan market has traditionally had high barriers to entry, including a high cost of trading and the need for end-to-end automation. According to the Digital 2023 Kenya Report, at the start of 2023, Kenya had 17.86 million internet users, 10.55 million social media users, and 63.94 million active cellular mobile connections.
New market access solutions must leverage internet connectivity, smartphone, and mobile money to enable domestic and diaspora retail investors to efficiently and conveniently access value-accretive opportunities on the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE).
Kilonzo added, “Retail investors can already transfer funds from MPesa and use their Safaricom Bonga points to buy shares on the EFG Hermes One Kenya App, a first in the frontier markets we operate. We will use the response here to iterate, improve, and roll out in all our frontier markets.”
Once registered on the App, retail investors can execute trades, access real-time stock quotes, and place, track, review, edit, and cancel open orders. In real time, they can build, monitor, and customize equity watch lists for individual stocks and stock portfolios.
