Fair Capital: The Technology of Trust.
The current system is a predatory game where 300 million African entrepreneurs are forced to pay a premium for their exclusion. When banks refuse credit, the only recourse is debt that comes with crippling interest, draining dignity and potential from families and businesses. Ziya was founded to end that cycle.
Our core belief is simple: Dignity is the foundation of economic health. We don't need new collateral; we need a system that recognizes existing trust.
A system rooted in community, powered by dignity, and driven by love.
Ziya is a Financial Operating System for the Excluded
We're not a bank. We're a trust engine. Built for groups, not just individuals. Designed for rotation, not accumulation. Fueled by zero-interest, not profit motives.
MSMEs joined our platform
was rotated from just KES 3.6M
self-managed groups operate with 99.5% repayment
of members are women
Our Why
"People are of two types: either your brother in faith or your equal in humanity." - Imam Ali (AS)
70% of Kenya's 7.5M MSMEs still can't access fair credit - despite having mobile wallets, customers, and grit.
Finance is broken. Not because it doesn't reach people. But because it doesn't understand them. We're here to make finance relevant again - by building around the systems that already work:
- Chamas
- ROSCAs
- Table banking
- Group trust
Not apps. Not risk scoring. Not digital debt traps.
What We Do
Ziya is a community-powered platform that:
- Enables group-based capital growth through zero-interest rotating credit
- Equips members with digital tools to manage, track, and automate contributions
- Builds financial behavior through recognition, nudges, and progress dashboards
- Keeps users debt-free and dignified with flat, transparent subscriptions
We're already supporting real capital growth:
From KES 2,000 to KES 15,000 within weeks - no interest, no shame, no exploitation.
Coming soon: ethical lease-to-own tools and embedded services for productive assets - grounded in the same principles.
Our Philosophy: Love Over Leverage
Ziya is built on a radical idea:
That finance can serve, not extract. That trust can scale.
That money can be communal - not coercive.
We prioritize:
- Giving more than we take
- Empathy as infrastructure
- Community as credit
This is a rebellion against financial apartheid - and an invitation to rebuild from the ground up.
Meet the Builders
Hassan Wanjiru
Founder & CEO
Fintech operator turned ecosystem builder. Hassan left unicorn-scale growth to build Ziya – where finance begins with people, not platforms.
Mariam Mohamed
Community & Operations Lead
Savings group organizer. Field-tested leader in grassroots finance. Mariam steers Ziya’s growth from the ground up – one agent, one group at a time.
Comark Onani
Tech Lead
Fintech systems architect with 15+ years in African infrastructure. Comark builds what scales Ziya – with empathy embedded in every layer.