Kenswitch has launched a domestic card scheme that could give Kenyan banks and financial institutions more options for issuing and processing card payments locally. The move expands the company’s role in Kenya’s payments sector and could strengthen local card infrastructure as digital payments continue to grow.
The Kenswitch Card will allow financial institutions to issue both physical and virtual cards on its network. The company unveiled the scheme at Strathmore University, where it demonstrated a digital card issuance system developed with TAI FINTECH, a fintech innovation venture affiliated with the university, and Stanchion Payments, a global payments technology company.
Expanding access to local card infrastructure
Kenswitch said the scheme will operate across its network of more than 2,200 ATMs, 50,000 point-of-sale terminals and 80,000 agent outlets. This gives participating financial institutions an existing local infrastructure through which they can issue cards and support domestic transactions.
The company is entering a market where Visa and Mastercard already have a strong presence. As of July 2026, Kenya had 11.16 million debit cards, 2.26 million prepaid cards and 340,852 credit cards, according to the Central Bank of Kenya.
“Through partnerships such as this, Kenswitch is positioning the local payments ecosystem to participate in the future of tokenised and digital payments while continuing to develop solutions that are relevant to Kenyan financial institutions and consumers,” said Kenswitch CEO John Mukono.
During the launch, the company demonstrated how a customer could open an account digitally and receive a virtual card almost immediately. The card could also be frozen and unfrozen, generate dynamic security codes and authenticate online purchases through app notifications or email.
Domestic card schemes can keep more payment infrastructure and related economic activity within local markets. Nigeria has taken a similar approach through AfriGo, which has reportedly issued more than one million cards and processed about ₦70 billion in transactions.
Moving towards smartphone-based payments
Kenswitch is also looking beyond physical cards. The company is exploring partnerships that could allow virtual Kenswitch cards to be added directly to supported smartphones for contactless Tap to Pay transactions.
“We are looking beyond the card itself to how consumers will use payment credentials in the future,” Mukono said.
The opportunity is supported by Kenya’s growing smartphone adoption. Smartphones accounted for 63.7% of the 78.7 million mobile phones connected to Kenyan networks in March 2026, according to the Communications Authority of Kenya.
However, mobile money remains the dominant payment method. Kenya had 94.4 million registered mobile money accounts in July, compared with KES 38.04 billion spent through debit, credit and prepaid cards that month. Mobile money agents handled KES 728.7 billion in cash-in and cash-out transactions during the same period.
Card use is nevertheless increasing. Debit cards have grown 4.2% since January, while prepaid cards have increased by nearly 20%.
Kenswitch is targeting financial institutions seeking greater access to domestic card infrastructure. The launch follows its April partnership with Visa to explore payment solutions, merchant acceptance, processing and settlement in Kenya.
