Complaints against Kenya’s digital lenders have risen sharply despite tighter regulation of the sector, suggesting consumer protection concerns persist three years after the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) was empowered to supervise the fast-growing industry.
The Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) said in its annual report that complaints against digital lenders climbed to 355 in the year to June 2025, from 67 a year earlier.
The increase made digital lenders the largest source of consumer complaints in financial services, accounting for nearly two-thirds of the sector’s grievances, reinforcing concerns that rapid growth in app-based lending continues to outpace improvements in market conduct.
The authority said the complaints were largely related to misleading representations, undisclosed charges, and unilateral changes to loan terms.
“This sector has, over the years, continued to record a high number of cases,” the competition watchdog said, attributing the trend to the rapid expansion of digital lending platforms that have widened access to credit while generating “violations of consumers’ welfare provisions”.
“The main consumer infringements included false and misleading representations and unconscionable conduct.”
Kenya amended its laws in 2022 to place digital credit providers under the CBK’s supervision, following years of complaints about high borrowing costs, misuse of borrowers’ personal data, and aggressive debt collection practices. Before then, hundreds of lenders operated outside the regulatory framework.
The latest figures suggest the licencing regime has yet to eliminate disputes between lenders and borrowers, even as more firms move into the regulated market.
The financial services sector accounted for 564 of the 915 consumer complaints received by the authority during the year, or 61.6% of all reported cases. Microfinance institutions accounted for 113 complaints, while Savings and Credit Cooperative Organisations (Saccos) and commercial banks recorded 68 and 28, respectively.
Among the cases was a complaint against African Capital Limited, a licenced digital lender, in which a borrower alleged that a KES 177,720 ($1,375) loan had risen to KES 500,000 ($3,869) after additional charges were imposed. The authority said the disputed charges were waived following its intervention, and the loan account closed.
In another case, a borrower complained that Mwananchi Credit repossessed his vehicle two months after issuing a loan, despite an unresolved contractual dispute. The competition authority advised the complainant to pursue the matter through the Small Claims Court, which hears lower-value civil claims.
Other digital lenders caught up in the consumer complaints were Mogo Auto Limited, Supreme Credit Acceptance Limited, Simple Pay Capital Limited, and Premier Credit.
The complaints come as regulators continue to expand oversight of the sector.
The CBK licenced another 25 digital credit providers this week, bringing the total number of approved lenders to 252 since licencing began in 2022. More than 500 applicants remain at various stages of the approval process, with the central bank saying it has received more than 800 applications.
Digital lenders have become an important source of consumer credit in Kenya, particularly for borrowers underserved by banks. According to CBK, licenced providers issued 8.3 million loans worth KES 150 billion ($1.16 billion) by May 2026.
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