Kenya: Tala appoints new General Manager

Non-bank lender Tala appoints Annstella Mumbi as the new General Manager for its Kenya division.

Before her current role, she held positions as Tala’s Global Director of Growth and Interim General Manager for Kenya.

She becomes one of the few women heading major technology companies in Kenya.

Mumbi is a seasoned business executive with over a decade of experience spanning fintech, EdTech, and venture funding. She has undertaken various roles in strategy, growth, expansion, and overall business leadership.

She has worked in various markets such as Rwanda, Tanzania, Ghana, Nigeria, South Africa, Uganda, and Kenya.

She possesses a bachelor’s degree in Mechatronics Engineering from Jomo Kenyatta University of Agriculture and Technology (JKUAT).

“She is able to bring the Kenya leadership team together and rally Tala around a bold vision for Kenya’s next phase of growth,” Tala chief business officer, Jori Pearsall, said in a statement.

Tala is a global financial app that focuses on serving the underbanked, connecting digital and cash systems in developing markets to enable greater participation in the global economy.

Currently, it handles approximately $200 million (Sh30 billion) in monthly transactions, serving over eight million customers across Kenya, the Philippines, Mexico, and India.

Since commencing operations in Kenya, the fintech credit provider has disbursed a cumulative total of $1.9 billion (285.1 billion) in loans through over 3.5 million transactions to Kenyan customers.

The company has secured financial support from a range of investors, including Upstart, Stellar Enterprise Fund, RPS Ventures, J. Safra Group, IVP, Revolution Growth, Lowercase Capital, and PayPal Ventures, through a combination of equity and debt funding.