BNPL Firms in Kenya Face MPs' Probe as Mogo Skips Hearing

What happened

Kenya's National Assembly has opened a new front in its long fight with high-cost credit. Its Departmental Committee on Finance and National Planning says it will question Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) providers after receiving complaints from borrowers who say they were exploited, including over how lenders recover debts.1 Committee chair Kuria Kimani, the MP for Molo, said the panel had several complaints from people who described themselves as victims. He said every firm in the sector would have to show that its operations follow existing safeguards.3

The immediate trigger was a missed meeting. Mogo Auto Limited had been invited to appear on Thursday, 15 October 2026. It did not attend and asked for the session to be moved to a later date.35 Kimani answered with a warning: the committee is ready to use National Assembly Standing Order 191 to make sure invited firms show up.5 Nairobi Wire described the provision as one that lets the House compel attendance.4

The committee wants answers on a long list of topics. MPs plan to ask about the firms' asset-financing products, how they sign up customers, their licensing, and whether they meet Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) requirements. They will also look at how accounts are managed, how payments are reconciled, what statements customers receive, and how borrowers are told about arrears.5 On defaults, lawmakers want to see the notices firms send, how they repossess assets, how those assets are valued and sold, and how the sale money is applied to outstanding loans.3 The committee also plans to review complaint handling, routes for escalating disputes, and how firms supervise agents and third-party contractors. A separate meeting with the CBK is planned.6

Reading the coverage: BNPL here means motorcycles

Kenyan outlets agree on the core facts. They report the same quotes from Kimani, the same Mogo no-show and the same Standing Order 191 warning.256 Where they differ is in framing. Some headlines present this as a general BNPL story.1 Eastleigh Voice instead called it a probe into motorcycle financing firms.6 The second framing is closer to the truth. The committee describes its own work as a review of motorcycle asset financing alongside BNPL arrangements.3 In Kenya, the BNPL label now covers deals where riders pay for boda boda motorcycles in weekly instalments while the lender keeps a GPS tracker on the bike.22

That matters for how the story should be read. In the United States, the Federal Reserve estimates BNPL issuance at about $156.7 billion in 2025, mostly from firms like Afterpay, Affirm and Klarna.17 More than 60 percent of that credit carried a 0 percent APR.13 The Kenyan product under scrutiny is very different. Watu Credit's country manager told the same committee in May 2024 that the firm charged 8.6 percent a month. That works out to about 169 percent a year once compounded.21 Mogo's own app listing gives a maximum APR of 270.24 percent for its boda boda logbook loans.21 These are high-cost secured loans on a work tool, not interest-free checkout splits on clothes.

Nairobi Wire also flagged what the committee has not said. It has named no BNPL provider other than Mogo, given no count of complaints, described no specific alleged abuses, and set no date for the hearings.4 People Daily likewise noted that no findings have been made against any individual firm.3 Those gaps should temper any reading of this week's news as a crackdown already in motion. For now, this is an inquiry.

Why Mogo is at the centre

Mogo's no-show comes with history. On 18 August 2026, a petition against the company from boda boda riders reached the National Assembly. It was filed by Charles Gichira of the Kenya Bodaboda Riders and Owners Association.21 The petition alleges excessive interest and charges, poor disclosure of loan terms, and motorcycles being repossessed as soon as a borrower defaults.21 It also claims some borrowers repaid more than their bikes were worth without getting ownership, and that some were still chased for money after insurers had paid out for stolen bikes.23 Speaker Moses Wetang'ula sent that petition to the Public Petitions Committee.30

There is also an enforcement record. In October 2024, the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) fined Mogo KSh10.85 million for false or misleading representations and unconscionable conduct. It also ordered refunds to three borrowers.23 Part of that case involved loans paid out in shillings but calculated in US dollars, so instalments moved with the exchange rate.21 In June 2026, a small claims court in Thika applied the in duplum rule to cut a Mogo claim of KSh677,381 down to KSh100,631.21 The Fintech Association of Kenya reports that Mogo is also fighting a class-action petition in the High Court.24 The petition's allegations have not been proven, and Mogo will get a chance to respond.23 Still, against this background, skipping a parliamentary invitation was always going to draw a sharp reaction.

Riders' complaints go well beyond one lender. The association has also named Watu Credit, Tugende, 15 Seconds, Mwananchi Credit and My Boda. It told MPs that defaulting for even one day can mean a seized bike, a KSh4,000 breakdown fee and KSh300 a day in storage charges.26 These are allegations from riders, not findings. But they explain why the committee's questions focus so heavily on repossession and on what happens to sale proceeds.

A familiar fight, round two

The same committee has done this before. In May 2024, it summoned Watu Credit, Mogo, JoyInc, 15 Minutes and My Boda after riders told MPs stories of bikes that ended up costing as much as Sh571,000.28 That inquiry led to the Business Laws (Amendment) Bill, 2024, which put non-deposit-taking credit providers such as digital lenders under CBK licensing.3735

Bringing these lenders under licensing did not end the complaints. Mogo was licensed on 27 June 2024 and Watu Credit on 5 June 2025, so both now fall under CBK's code of conduct.22 CBK's roster of licensed digital credit providers had grown to 281 by the end of September 2026.21 Meanwhile, complaints to CAK about digital lenders rose from 67 to 355 in a single year. They covered hidden charges, changed loan terms and early seizure of assets.29 One ITEdgeNews analysis says enforcement is now split between three regulators and the courts. Its argument is that issuing licences was the easy step, and supervising each loan is the harder job still ahead.21

This is the most useful way to read Kimani's move. It is an admission that the 2024 reforms changed who is allowed to lend but did not change enough about how they lend. Parliament is now attacking that gap from several directions at once. In August, MPs backed a petition to extend the in duplum rule, which stops interest from exceeding the principal on a defaulted loan, beyond banks to digital lenders, Saccos and microfinance firms.31 The Attorney-General and the CBK both supported widening the rule.34 Separately, Kisumu West MP Rosa Buyu is promoting a proposal that would require full disclosure of charges before a loan is made, notice before recovery begins, and a cap on interest after default.33

The global picture

Kenya is not alone in tightening BNPL rules, though the products differ. In the UK, BNPL came under Financial Conduct Authority regulation on 15 July 2026. That brought in affordability checks, access to the Financial Ombudsman, and Section 75 protection on eligible purchases.15 The Dutch lower house supports a bill that would set a minimum age of 18 for BNPL and require checks against a credit register for larger purchases.9 In the US, Richmond Fed research finds that BNPL poses little risk to financial stability at its current size, though the effects on consumers are mixed.12

Rich-country rules focus on stopping shoppers from taking on too many small debts. Kenya's problem is sharper. The loan finances the very asset that earns the money to repay it. As Dawan Africa put it, the motorcycle is often how the borrower earns the money to pay off the loan.23 Losing it to repossession means losing both the debt-servicing income and the livelihood.

What to watch

The next real test is whether Mogo turns up at the rescheduled session, and whether the committee actually uses Standing Order 191 if it does not. The CBK hearing will show whether the regulator thinks its current rules are enough or need tightening. That includes its powers over pricing models, which already require written approval before any change.32 Industry groups are pushing back on other bills before the same committee. The Kenya Bankers Association has warned about regulatory overlap and heavy penalties in this year's competition and microfinance bills.

On balance, this inquiry looks less like a one-off spat and more like the moment Parliament shifts from licensing BNPL and asset-finance lenders to policing how they price and collect their loans. Lenders that treat the summons as optional are likely to find that approach more costly than showing up.