IFC Invests in Kifiya’s AI Infrastructure to Connect Capital to Africa’s Real Economy

Kifiya Financial Technology PLC announced at the Africa Financial Summit (AFIS) that it has signed an investment agreement with IFC, a member of the World Bank Group. IFC’s first investment in Kifiya will scale the company’s AgFinTech and rural reach work, connecting smallholder farmers, agricultural microenterprises and other underserved businesses to finance and markets.

Kifiya’s four layers of tech infrastructure make them visible and financeable. Its Data & AI Infrastructure turns more than 42 data families and 10 billion alternative data signals into a risk profile for borrowers who have never been assessed before. Its Decisioning Infrastructure converts those profiles into decision-grade intelligence — risk scores, credit limits, fraud and climate risk, and portfolio monitoring — so institutions can lend to new customers while keeping full oversight of risk. Its Financial Infrastructure provides the rails to disburse and collect small loans digitally through agents and rural cooperatives, and its Market Infrastructure connects borrowers to buyers, suppliers and services. Partner institutions keep their capital, credit policy and customers; Kifiya provides the infrastructure that makes the lending possible.

In agriculture, this infrastructure profiles and credit-scores farmers, aggregates them, and enables their access to financial services, inputs, mechanization, advisory services and markets. Each service strengthens the others, so credit turns into lasting growth, while suppliers, traders and processors gain working capital.

IFC’s investment will enable Kifiya to scale its AgFinTech work in Ethiopia and support its expansion into new markets.

“Our purpose is to make Africa’s invisible economy investable. Farmers and microenterprises already produce, trade and create value, but much of that activity remains unseen by formal finance. We have built the AI and data infrastructure to make it visible and financeable, while supporting the orchestration and governance of capital,” said Munir Duri, Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kifiya.

“Across Africa, too many farmers and entrepreneurs still lack access to the financing they need to grow. Technology can help close that gap. Through our investment in Kifiya, IFC is helping bring financing within reach of more farmers and entrepreneurs, so they can invest, create jobs, and build stronger livelihoods,” said Ethiopis Tafara, IFC Vice President for Africa.

The investment builds on IFC’s existing advisory work with Kifiya.

IFC’s 2026 report, Cracking the Credit Code, features Kifiya as a case study in how its alternative data scoring and digital lending infrastructure help banks serve informal enterprises and first-time borrowers.

With AI and tech hubs in Nairobi and Cape Town, Kifiya is in active expansion discussions in Rwanda, Uganda, Tanzania and Kenya. Its infrastructure is built once and configured for each market’s institutions, currency and regulation, bringing together financial institutions, technology partners and local distribution networks to connect more African enterprises with capital and markets.