Investors below the age of 30 now control Sh9 billion in Standard Chartered Bank Kenya’s SC Shilingi Fund, signalling the rapid rise of younger savers in sophisticated investment products traditionally dominated by older and wealthier clients.
The bank said the digital money market fund has grown to Sh30 billion in assets under management barely four years after launch, highlighting a strong appetite for low-entry, tech-driven savings and investment products.
The latest figures show younger clients are increasingly embracing formal investment structures much earlier than previous generations amid rising financial awareness and mobile-driven investing, as well as growing interest in wealth accumulation outside traditional savings accounts.
“The product is now Sh30 billion, and when you look at the profile of clients there, 30 percent of assets, which comes to around Sh9 billion, is held by clients below the age of 30,” said Paul Njoki, StanChart’s head of affluent banking and wealth management for Kenya and East Africa.
Mr Njoki further revealed that clients below the age of 40 account for more than 70 percent of investors within the fund, underlining the unusually young demographic profile emerging around the digital investment product.
Young money
This is in line with global trends.
Nearly a third of Generation Z have started investing by the time they reach early adulthood, more than any other generation at the same age, according to a new survey by the World Economic Forum.
Thirty percent of Gen Z – those aged between 18 and 27 – began investing in capital markets at university age compared with 15 percent of millennials and five percent of baby boomers, according to the poll, which surveyed 13,000 people across 13 countries.
Experts say investing has become increasingly popular among young people, driven by the emergence of mobile apps that charge little to no commission and the abundance of financial content available online.
Young people are much more likely than older generations to deploy artificial intelligence tools to help them invest.
Rapid growth
The Sh30 billion under the SC Shilingi Fund marks a sharp acceleration from three years ago when the fund stood at Sh1.25 billion, slightly less than a year after its rollout.
The latest disclosures now show the product has expanded 24 times from the portfolio reported in early 2023, reflecting explosive growth within the country’s increasingly competitive digital investment market.
StanChart launched the SC Shilingi Fund in February 2022, positioning it as a low-entry digital money market product accessible through the lender’s SC Mobile application.
The bank initially allowed customers to begin investing with as little as Sh1,000 before later lowering the minimum entry threshold further as competition intensified among digital savings and investment products.
The fund was developed in partnership with Sanlam Investments East Africa and global digital wealth technology provider Bambu as part of StanChart’s broader push into wealth management.
Digital shift
Money market funds mainly invest in short-term instruments such as government securities and fixed deposits, allowing investors relatively stable returns alongside easier access to cash compared with longer-term investments.
The strong uptake reflects a wider shift in Kenya’s financial sector where banks, insurers and fintech firms are increasingly targeting younger customers through mobile-first investment platforms with lower minimum contribution requirements.
Asset managers and insurers have, in recent years, accelerated the rollout of digital investment products, allowing customers to invest amounts as low as Sh100 in money market and unit trust products via smartphones.
Regulatory data shows that as at the close of last December, assets under management by money market funds dominated the Collective Investment Schemes (CIS) market, accounting for 56 percent at Sh423.66 billion.
The competition has intensified amid growing demand from younger professionals and salaried workers seeking alternatives to ordinary bank savings accounts that historically offered lower returns.
Kenya’s financial sector has in recent years witnessed rising convergence between banks, fintech firms, insurers and fund managers as institutions compete for digitally savvy customers seeking integrated investment and savings products.
The growth highlights how technology is lowering barriers to formal investment products previously associated with older clients and physically intensive onboarding processes.
