Unlocking Finance for Informal Businesses in Zimbabwe
SoshoPay, a Zimbabwean fintech startup founded in 2022 by Simbarashe and Shirley Gwenzi, is pioneering an innovative approach to SME financing. The platform addresses the critical gap in access to credit faced by millions of informal businesses across Africa—where over 40 million SMEs operate informally yet less than 10% receive formal funding.
Data-Driven Credit Scoring with Solar Assets
SoshoPay’s unique solution leverages energy access as a proxy for creditworthiness. By financing essential solar and productive assets, the platform tracks real-time usage and repayment data—converting everyday business activity into reliable credit signals that banks and MFIs can trust.
This approach allows financial institutions to:
- Onboard informal businesses without changing existing systems
- Monitor risk more effectively
- Improve recovery rates through transparent data
Strong Early Traction in Zimbabwe
To date, SoshoPay has facilitated over $720,000 in credit through partnerships with the Zimbabwe Microfinance Fund and YEC Fund. Key highlights include:
- 98% repayment rate—demonstrating model effectiveness
- Live integrations with financing and payment partners
- Over 600 small businesses financed
- A growing pipeline of $3.5 million in solar nanogrids
Expansion Across Southern and East Africa
With a proven track record in Zimbabwe, SoshoPay is poised to expand across the region—targeting markets like South Africa, Zambia, Mozambique, Malawi, Angola, Uganda, and Tanzania.
The company generates revenue through platform fees paid by financial institutions who integrate its data-driven lending solutions.