Business Overdraft

Business Loan is a loan product offered by Safaricom in partnership with Asante. It offers a 1, 7 & 21-day loan facility for the Lipa Na M-PESA Buy Goods Partners (Business till) 

• The loan amount ranges between Kshs.100 to Ksh.200,000.  
• Asante is a fintech company offering financial services to our Lipa na M-PESA merchants in partnership with Safaricom.  

Benefits   

The business loan has the following benefits.  

• Keeping merchants’ businesses open and afloat.  
• Quick and easy access to affordable credit to complete transactions.  
• Growth of merchant networks.  
• Seamless payments among merchants.  

Eligibility  

• All Lipa Na M-PESA Buy Goods Merchants who settle funds collected in their M-PESA tills to their MPESA account and have activated the Business till functionality.  
• Till must have been active on LNM for a minimum of 3 months (90 Days)  
• Merchant will use their nominated numbers to access the service.  
• A merchant can only apply for one loan or one till per store at a time.  
• Only active tills are eligible.  

Frequently Asked Questions   

1. What is a Business Loan product?  

Business Loan is a loan product offered by Safaricom in partnership with Asante. It offers a 1, 7 & 21-day loan facility for the Lipa Na M-PESA merchants using M-PESA Business Till product.  

The loan amount ranges between Kshs.100 to Ksh.200,000.  

2. What are the Business Loan benefits?  

The Business Loan has benefits to the merchants as outlined below:  

• Quick and easy access  
• Affordable credit.  
• Easy repayment methods.  

  3. Who is eligible for the Business Loan?  

To access this service the merchant:  

• Must be using M-PESA Business Till product that settles funds collected to merchant nominated number.   
• Till must have been active for a minimum of 3 months (90 Days)  

  4. How can I qualify for the Business loan?  

The service is available to all Lipa Na M-PESA Business Till merchants who settle funds collected in their M-PESA tills to their MPESA account.  

5. How will I register for the M-PESA Business Loan?   

Merchant will use their nominated numbers to access the service.    

On USSD  

• Dial *234# from the Nominated Number  
• Select M-PESA Business Till  
• Enter your store number/ Ho.  
• Select Business Loans   
• Select Access Loans from our Partners.   
• Select the Partner   
• Accept the Terms and Conditions to opt in for the M-PESA Business Loan.   
• Enter operator ID and PIN  

6. How will I check my Loan Limit?  

To check your limit:  

On USSD   

• Dial *234#  
• Select M-PESA Business Till. 
• Enter your store number/ Ho.  
• Select Business Loans. 
• Select Access Loans from our Partners.   
• Select the Partner.  
• Select Check loan limit.  

7. How is the loan limit determined?  

The loan limit is based on your Lipa Na M-PESA Till activity. The more you use the till by receiving M-PESA payments from customers the higher the chances of increasing the loan Limit.  

8. What should I do to increase my loan limit?  

The loan limit will be adjusted downwards or upwards based on your repayment history.  

9. How will I request a loan after registration?  

The loan will be accessed through:  

On USSD   

• Dial *234# 
• Select M-PESA Business Till. 
• Enter your Store Number/ Ho.  
• Select Business Loans.  
• Select Access Loans from our Partners.   
• Select the Partner.  
• Select Request Loan.  
• Enter the Amount.   
• Select a Loan Repayment Period.   
• Enter Operator ID and PIN. 

10. What fee will I be charged for the loan?   

Loan charges depend on the Financier you select. Currently, the financier on M-PESA Business Loan is Asante Finance which charges as below.  

• Access Fee: One-off fee charged at the time of taking the loan.  
• Roll Over Fee: Where the loan is not paid by the due date, a rollover fee will be applied to the outstanding balance the next day, after which a customer will be given a grace period/rollover duration.  
• Penalty Fee: Where the loan remains unpaid after application at the end of the rollover period, a daily penalty fee of 0.72% per day for a maximum of 60 days will be charged on the outstanding balance.  

11. How long will it take for me to receive the requested amount?  

The loan will be disbursed immediately to your M-PESA Business Till account.  

12. Can I request another loan before paying the previous one?   

No. If you have an existing Business Loan, you will be required to fully repay an existing loan before requesting for another i.e. One loan at a time.  

13.  I have several tills; can I request a loan on all of them?  

You can opt-in to Business Loan on several short codes but will only access loan on one short code at a time.  

14. Can my loan request be declined?  

Yes, if you do not meet the eligibility criteria:  

• You have an existing Business Loan.  
• Your till is not active.  
• You have a zero limit.   

15. How will I make a repayment for the Loan?  

To repay the loan follow the steps;  

On USSD  

• Dial *234#.  
• Select M-PESA Business Till.  
• Enter your Store Number/ Ho.  
• Select Business Loans.  
• Select Access Loans from our Partners.   
• Select the Partner.  
• Select Pay Loan.  
• Select Pay for Self or Pay for Other.  
• Select Full Payment or Partial Payment.  
• Enter the Amount (If selected partial payment).   
• Enter Operator ID and PIN.  

16. What happens if I do not pay back on time?  

If you do not repay your loan on time the following will apply;  

• Roll Over Fee: Where the loan is not paid by the due date, a rollover fee will be applied to the outstanding balance the next day, after which a customer will be given a grace period/rollover duration.  
• Penalty Fee: Where the loan remains unpaid after application at the end of the rollover period, a daily penalty fee of 0.72% per day for a maximum of 60 days will be charged on the outstanding balance.  

17. What are the reasons that my loan request can be declined?   

This might be a result of:  

• If the Loan amount requested is higher than your Loan Limit. The Loan request MUST be made within your Loan Limit.   
• If you have been blacklisted by the Credit Reference Bureau.   
• If you have an existing Loan. You will be required to fully repay an existing loan before requesting another. You can only request one Loan.   

18. What is CRB?   

A Credit Reference Bureau is a firm that collects information from various sources and provides consumer credit information on individual consumers for a variety of uses, for example, it provides information on individuals borrowing and paying habits.   

19. What is the CRB score or rating?   

This is an individual's credit score given by a CRB using the individual’s credit history which is how well you have performed on all previous loans and how well you are performing on your current loan (s). For example, are you defaulting on any loan? Do you pay all your loans on time?   

20. How do I clear my negative listing at CRB?   

You have to fully repay your defaulted loan(s) to the respective financial institution(s) and apply for a clearance certificate from the CRB.   

After successfully clearing your negatively listed loans, the record may remain on your account for up to five years.   

To improve your score, you must improve your repayment behavior on all your current and future loans, that is paying loan(s) on time.  

 21. How do I check my CRB score and listing?   

You can click on this link on your mobile phone (Google Chrome Browser recommended) to get a comprehensive report from Credit Info, which is one of the Credit Reference Bureaus. They charge Kshs. 50 for a report.  

 22. How does a negative CRB listing affect my account?   

A negative listing can limit you from accessing future loans from financial institutions.   

  23. My repayment did not reflect, and I have been charged extra fees, what do I do?   

If you were charged additional fees because the repayment made did not reflect on time, you are eligible for a waiver. Call Safaricom Customer Care Line 100 to initiate the waiver request. The waiver should reflect in less than 48 hours after it is requested.   

24. Who do I contact if I have any questions?  

For support and inquiry, customers should contact.  

• Call 100, 200 or 234.  
• Social Media pages; Twitter; Safaricom PLC, Safaricom Care, Facebook; Safaricom PLC.  
• Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.