Standard Chartered Bank Kenya in collaboration with Sanlam Investments East Africa Ltd (Sanlam) and Mangosteen BCC Pte Ltd (Bambu) today launched SC Shilingi funds, a low-ticket money markets fund proposition for Standard Chartered Bank clientele.
The 100 percent digital investment product available on the SC Mobile app allows clients to invest amounts as low as Ksh1000, earn competitive interests and withdraw funds anytime.
The product will enable one to move money from his/her current account daily, weekly or monthly to the Money Market Fund managed by Sanlam. The platform will combine a customer current account with the local currency Money Market Fund investment to provide clients with attractive returns, higher than they would ordinarily get from a current account and/or savings account while maintaining a relatively high level of liquidity.
“Our value proposition is to offer our clients diverse wealth management solutions, tailor-made to meet their needs at every point of their life journeys. The SC Shilingi Funds will enable all our existing and new clients to achieve their financial goals by starting their investment journey, diversifying their portfolios and saving towards future needs while earning attractive returns,” said Edith Chumba, Head Consumer, Private and Business Banking at Standard Chartered.
She added, “At Standard Chartered Bank, we are committed to driving financial inclusion to empower people and communities to meet basic needs. With as little as KShs 1000, Kenyans can now start building an investment portfolio or saving towards needs like housing, education, healthcare or for leisure and travel. This product can also act as an emergency fund with the ability to withdraw funds easily to help our clients prepare for, respond to and recover from global health and economic crises, such as COVID-19.”
Speaking at the launch, Mr Mark Mulatya, Chief Operating Officer at Sanlam Investments East Africa Limited noted that Sanlam Investments believes in improving people’s lives by empowering them to be financially stable through wealth creation.
“We do this by responding to the needs of our customers across a variety of financial services and in a timely manner. This collaboration solidifies our shared commitment to promote a saving and investing culture through solutions such as the Sanlam Money Market Fund which offers capital preservation, high levels of investment returns and immediate access to money when requested,” said Mr Mulatya.
“Over the past few years, we have witnessed a sharp rise in the demand and uptake of the Sanlam Money Market Fund. By leveraging on Standard Chartered’s robust digital platforms such as their SC Mobile app, we seek to reach millions of Kenyan residents who are keen on saving and growing their wealth,” he added.
The Sanlam Unit Trust is currently valued at approximately Ksh9 billion.
“We’ve always believed that investing is about accessibility. And we are confident that the SC Shilingi Funds is the perfect way for people to start investing. As a technology partner working alongside Standard Chartered, we really focused on making a simple and seamless extension of their platform for their banking clients – enabling access for every customer to start and maintain investing habits via regular savings plans,” said Ned Phillips, Co-Founder and CEO of Bambu.
Standard Chartered Bank recently released a Wealth Expectancy Report that shows that five in every 10 of Kenyans under 35 years have not set retirement goals. To bridge this gap, the Bank is using technology and digital innovation to increase participation and drive financial inclusion. Standard Chartered is banking on technology adoption in the customer journey and distribution of its products as it makes forays into the Kenyan Mass Market space.
