Stanbic, Ramani partner to endorse domestic trade

Dar es Salaam. Stanbic Bank has entered into a partnership with Ramani, a financial technology company, to facilitate domestic trade and drive financial inclusion.

By leveraging technology and financial expertise, this partnership aims to empower entrepreneurs, streamline trade processes, and drive economic growth.

Speaking at the launch of the initiative recently Stanbic Bank’s head of business and commercial banking, Mr Fredrick Max, emphasized the pivotal role of technology as the catalyst for advancing financial inclusion and shaping the trajectory of domestic trade.

He revealed that the decision to partner with Ramani was because its vision to digitise the value chain aligns with the bank’s strategy to support domestic markets through technology.

“By merging Ramani’s cutting-edge financial technology with Stanbic Bank’s banking expertise, we aim to revolutionise domestic trade in Tanzania,” he said.

Mr Max said businesses need capital and much more. They also need capacity building, financial literacy, record-keeping, succession planning, and access to markets.

Ramani provides a simple digital channel that streamlines the end-to-end management of product orders for micro-distribution centres, he noted.

Ramani CEO and co-founder, Iain Usiri, said Ramani is a financial technology company that provides a software platform that connects brands.

“A distributor can keep track of where their salespeople are, who they are selling to, and how much inventory is left.

Our vision is to transform the value chain from pen and paper to technology, digitising the value chain from the point of production to when it reaches a consumer,” he said.

Mr Usiri added; “Through Ramani platform, Stanbic will be able to monitor their credit performance in real-time, enabling them to resize or deploy loans efficiently.”

Ramani’s co-founder emphasised why such partnerships are significant considering that Africa’s supply chains are currently broken because of a lack of data transparency and a lack of access to financial services.

Meanwhile, in another development, Carflex Enterprises founder and CEO, Calvin Felix, has shed light on the ongoing challenges faced by young entrepreneurs seeking to kickstart their ventures, particularly in accessing loans amidst regulatory hurdles and stringent requirements.

Regardless of the persistent challenges, Mr Felix acknowledged the strides made by the current government in improving the business environment.

“The current government has indeed made notable improvements in terms of reducing bureaucracy and red tape, contributing to an improved ease of doing business,” he said.