StanChart’s $231 Million Fund and Ziidi Signal Kenya’s Gen Z Investing Boom

For a generation raised on smartphones, mobile money and economic uncertainty, investing is no longer viewed as a privilege reserved for the wealthy or middle-aged. In Kenya, Generation Z is turning the mobile phone into a trading floor, a savings account and a gateway to wealth creation, forcing banks, telecoms groups and the stock market itself to adapt to a younger, faster and far more digital financial future

Kenya’s Generation Z is reshaping the country’s banking and investment industry, funnelling millions of dollars into digital savings funds and mobile stock trading platforms as lenders and telecoms groups race to capture a young, smartphone-first generation of investors.

Standard Chartered Bank Kenya said investors under the age of 30 now control KSh9bn ($69m) in its SC Shilingi Fund, a digital money market fund that has rapidly grown into one of the country’s largest retail investment products. The fund now manages KSh30bn ($231m) in assets, just four years after launch, highlighting how younger Kenyans are increasingly bypassing traditional savings accounts in favour of mobile-driven investment products.

“The product is now KSh30bn and when you look at the profile of clients there, 30 per cent of assets, which comes to around KSh9bn, is held by clients below the age of 30,” Paul Njoki, StanChart’s head of affluent banking and wealth management for Kenya and East Africa said as quoted by the Business Daily paper.

He added that investors below the age of 40 account for more than 70 per cent of the fund’s assets, underlining a demographic shift in a sector historically dominated by older and wealthier savers.

The surge mirrors broader global trends. A recent survey by the World Economic Forum found that 30 per cent of Gen Z investors began investing while at university, compared with 15 per cent of millennials and 5 per cent of baby boomers at the same age. Analysts attribute the shift to the rise of low-cost mobile investment apps, financial content on social media and growing use of artificial intelligence tools by younger investors.

StanChart launched the SC Shilingi Fund in 2022 as a low-entry money market product accessible through its mobile banking application. The minimum investment threshold was initially set at KSh1,000 ($8) before being lowered further as competition intensified among banks, insurers and fintech groups targeting younger savers.

Money market funds invest largely in short-term government securities and bank deposits, offering relatively stable returns and easier access to cash than long-term investment products. Regulatory data shows money market funds accounted for 56 per cent of Kenya’s collective investment schemes industry at the end of last year, with assets under management of KSh423.66bn ($3.26bn).

At the same time, mobile money operator Safaricom is attempting to pull a new generation of retail traders into the stock market through Ziidi Trader, a mobile share-trading platform linked to its M-Pesa payments system.

Safaricom said about 84,000 investors bought shares through the platform between February and March, only weeks after launch. More than 511,000 users signed up for the service, which allows customers to buy shares on the Nairobi Securities Exchange directly from their phones without opening a traditional brokerage account.

Data from the exchange shows Ziidi Trader facilitated KSh772.2m ($5.95m) worth of trades between February and early May through more than 268,000 transactions. The average trade size stood at KSh2,872 ($22), far below the broader market average of KSh63,950 ($493), indicating strong participation from small retail investors rather than institutional traders.

“This confirms that ordinary citizens are now actively participating in Kenya’s capital markets,” said Eric Ruenji, founder and chair of Theo Capital Holdings.

The platform played a prominent role in the recent Kenya Pipeline Company IPO, where roughly half of participating retail investors placed orders through M-Pesa. President William Ruto publicly praised the system for broadening citizen participation in ownership of state assets.

For Kenya’s financial sector, the shift could reshape how an entire generation saves, invests and builds wealth.

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