Kenya’s leading payments switch, Kenswitch, has entered the card issuance market with its new Kenswitch Card scheme. This move expands beyond their existing role of connecting banks and financial institutions, allowing them to now support physical and virtual card payments on their network.
The launch event at Strathmore University showcased a digital card issuance system built in partnership with TAI FINTECH (a university-affiliated fintech venture) and Stanchion Payments. Kenswitch aims to provide an alternative for domestic card transactions alongside established global networks like Visa and Mastercard, which are already widely used by Kenyan banks.
According to the Central Bank of Kenya data from July 2026, Kenya had 11.16 million debit cards, 2.26 million prepaid cards, and 340,852 credit cards in circulation. Kenswitch’s network spans over 2,200 ATMs, 50,000 point-of-sale terminals, and 80,000 agent outlets across the country.
“Through partnerships like this, Kenswitch is positioning our local payments ecosystem to participate in the future of tokenized and digital payments,” said CEO John Mukono. The company demonstrated a use case where customers could open accounts digitally and receive virtual cards within minutes, featuring security features like dynamic codes and transaction authentication through app notifications.
This development mirrors similar initiatives in other African markets, such as Nigeria’s AfriGo scheme launched in 2023 by the Central Bank of Nigeria. Domestic card schemes help retain more payment infrastructure and economics locally while reducing reliance on foreign networks.
Looking ahead, Kenswitch is exploring integrations with smartphones for Tap to Pay functionality, capitalizing on Kenya’s growing smartphone penetration (92.9% as of December 2025) and aligning with the evolving digital payments landscape.