Kenya’s Chase Bank has just launched the pilot phase of its SME Biz Hub, a free secure space where entrepreneurs can now meet and network. After a 2015 research of Kenya’s SME environment facilitated by Chase, the concern was raised that the banks are doing too little to help entrepreneurs succeed against the many odds pitched against them. The self-acclaimed ‘Kenyan SME Bank’ has therefore taken it upon itself to promote the entrepreneurs with this initiative.

Talk about having fun on the job, it would seem that Kenyan entrepreneurs just got an opportunity to socialize, coupled with a lot of potential value in this arrangement. It certainly profers hope for the commited businessowner, who never takes time off for leisure. The SME Biz Hub is expected to foster networking among entrepreneurs, and they can also engage with financial partners (provided by the bank, I guess) and benefit from business and financial advisory.

Entrepreneurs in Kenya and indeed, the rest of Africa face many challenges not only with capital, but also in the areas of networking and gaining partnerships with big companies. To bridge this gap, Chase Bank has resolved to listen to, and understand clients, giving them flexible solutions that enable them achieve what matters most to them and their businesses. Entrepreneurs will be assisted to put processes in place, which will ensure longevity for their businesses in the face of natural disasters like cut throat competition, tough regulatory environment, inflation, changes in interest rates e.t.c.

According to the Capital Markets Authority of Kenya (CMA), SMEs offer employment to an estimated 7.5 million people (30%) in Kenya and accounts for 80% of employment and contributes over 92% of the new jobs created annually according to the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics. Despite this huge contribution of SMEs to the country’s GDP, many of them are still largely unbanked, as Chase Bank discovered.

In a statement published on the bank’s website, it says:

The SME Biz Hub is our way of promoting Kenyan entrepreneurs. They will present an opportunity for our clients and non-clients to hold meetings while providing the client with access to financial & non-financial services. Services such as advisory services from our dedicated Relationship & Portfolio Managers, internet access and meeting rooms for networking with other market players and presentations to their customers.

We have also streamlined our business product propositions & simplified our service offerings giving our SMEs so much more. So, are you an entrepreneur looking to network with other like-minded individuals? Visit our new SME Biz Hubs , located at Hurlinghum Branch, Nairobi and Moi Avenue Branch, Mombasa.