How Digital Became the Backbone of Customer Experience at NCBA

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To many banks, digital banking is just a convenience way to serve their customers. But for  NCBA, digital innovation is the bank’s core strategy and is transforming its everyday service provision.

And the numbers don’t lie. According to the bank’s full year 2025 financial results, over 90% of NCBA’s transactions are now conducted through digital channels, marking a decisive shift away from traditional branch-based banking.

NCBA Group disbursed KES 1.4 trillion, 33 per cent up year on year via digital platforms and its digital business now contributes 32 per cent of Group profitability reaching Profit Before Tax of KES 9.0 billion. The Group’s investments in upgrading digital platforms, enhancing data capabilities and collaboration with telco partners have paid off, positioning
NCBA as the undoubted regional leader in digital financial services.

Flagship platforms such as the NCBA Mobile App and NCBA Connect (internet banking) continue to anchor this ecosystem, enabling customers to manage their finances anytime, anywhere.

Through M-Shwari and Fuliza, delivered in partnership with Safaricom, the bank has reached over 30 million customers, disbursing hundreds of billions of shillings in mobile loans annually. These platforms have become essential financial tools, providing instant access to credit, savings, and liquidity for millions of users.

For small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), digital banking is transforming how businesses operate. Today, over 80% of SME transactions in key segments are processed digitally, supported by seamless integration with M-Pesa, EFT, RTGS, and card payment systems. This enables business owners to receive payments, pay suppliers, monitor cash flow, and access financing in real time.

Consider a Nairobi-based entrepreneur running a growing retail business. Using NCBA’s digital platforms, they can reconcile accounts instantly, track incoming payments, and access short-term credit or asset finance solutions digitally, with turnaround times reduced from days to near-instant. This efficiency allows them to focus less on processes and more on growth.

For individual customers, the experience is equally transformative. From bill payments and fund transfers to expense tracking and loan management, NCBA’s platforms offer a simple, intuitive interface. The Loop app continues to attract a younger, digitally native audience, expanding the bank’s reach and redefining lifestyle banking.

Security remains a cornerstone of this digital growth. NCBA continues to invest in advanced cybersecurity infrastructure, including multi-factor authentication, real-time fraud monitoring, and transaction alerts. These measures ensure that as convenience increases, customer trust and protection remain uncompromised.

Beyond convenience, digital banking is driving financial inclusion at scale. Mobile-first solutions like M-Shwari and Fuliza have brought millions of previously underserved customers into the formal financial system, supporting savings culture and access to emergency credit across Kenya and the wider region.

The impact extends beyond transactions. With real-time visibility and control over their finances, customers are empowered to make smarter decisions, manage risk, and plan for the future with greater confidence.

NCBA continues to invest in platform enhancements, deeper ecosystem integrations, and data-driven innovation. As digital adoption accelerates, the bank remains focused on delivering a frictionless, secure, and customer-centric banking experience and for it, digital is not just a channel but the backbone of how customers experience financial services every day.

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Sam Wakoba
Based in Nairobi, Kenya, Sam is a pan-African technology journalist, author, entrepreneur, technology business mentor, judge, educationalist, and a sought-after speaker and panelist across Africa’s innovation ecosystem. He is the convenor of the popular monthly #TechNight evening event and the #StartupEast Awards and Conference, platforms that bring together startup founders, developers, entrepreneurs, investors, content creators, and tech professionals from across the continent. For more than 16 years, Sam has reported on and analysed Africa’s technology landscape, covering some of the continent’s most impactful, and at times controversial policies, programs, investors, co-founders, startups, and corporations. His work is known for its independence, depth, and fairness, with a singular goal of helping build and strengthen Africa’s nascent technology ecosystem. Beyond journalism, Sam is a business analyst and consultant, working with brands, universities, corporates, SMEs, and startups across East Africa, as well as international companies entering the East African market or scaling across Africa. In his free time, he volunteers as a consulting editor and fintech analyst at Business Tech Kenya, a business, technology, and data firm that publishes reports, reviews, and insights on business and technology trends in Kenya. Follow him on X: @SamWakoba