4G Capital recognised as 2022 Best for The World™ for exceptional impact on its Customer Area
Wayne Hennessy-Barrett, CEO and Founder of 4G Capital
Nairobi, 13th July 12, 2022: 4G Capital, an award-winning neobank powering micro and small business growth in Africa, has been named 2022 Best for the World™ B Corp™ in recognition of its exceptional positive impact on its Customer Area. Best for the World is a distinction granted by B Lab to Certified B Corporations (B Corps) whose verified B Impact Scores in the five impact areas evaluated in the B Impact Assessment — community, customers, environment, governance, and workers — rank in the top 5% of all B Corps in their corresponding size group.
4G Capital earned this honour due to its core mission of growing business with capital and knowledge. It enables traditionally excluded micro and small enterprises to access funding. 4G Capital attributes its success to a unique model comprising of a nationwide network of physical branches across Kenya and Uganda augmented by intelligent machine learning technologies. 4G Capital knows that small businesses benefit from continuous support when handling credit. Therefore, the company offers a curriculum of customer enterprise training and financial literacy blended with appropriately sized working capital loans. This approach has seen 4G Capital’s customers increase their revenue by an average of 82% annually.
Wayne Hennessy-Barrett, CEO and Founder of 4G Capital, said: “We are honoured to receive this recognition. It is a testament to the commitment and hard work of our staff across Kenya and Uganda who place customer success at the heart of all our work. I’d like to thank B Lab’s rigour and professionalism in setting the highest benchmark for ethical business.”
Every year, Best for the World recognises the top-performing B Corps creating the most significant positive impact through their businesses. More than a badge of honour, Best for the World provides an opportunity for recognised companies to share knowledge, learnings, and best practices with the B Corp community and businesses outside of the community to encourage innovation and transformation across the business sector. The full lists are available at bcorporation.net. B Lab administers the Best for the World recognition. This global network certifies and mobilises B (for ‘benefit’) Corporations, businesses that meet high standards of positive social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency. Today, there are more than 5,000 B Corps across 80 countries and 155 industries, unified by one common goal: building an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economic system.
"Each Best for the World edition is an opportunity to raise the bar for how businesses can and should operate to create real and lasting positive impact for their workers, customers, communities, and the environment," said Dan Osusky, Head of Standards and Insights at B Lab Global. "While no company is perfect, and even the best companies can and should continue to strive to improve, the B Corps recognition as Best for the World can provide us all — standards setters, B Corps, non-B Corps, and sustainability advocates — with inspiration on what true business leadership can look like to make progress on addressing our current global challenges.”
B Corp Certification doesn’t just evaluate a product or service. It assesses the overall social and environmental impact of the company that stands behind it. To achieve B Corp Certification, a company must meet a score of at least 80 out of 200 points on the B Impact Assessment. The company’s positive net impact is evaluated with a comprehensive risk review and anevaluation of a company’s negative impact, necessary changes to corporate governance structures to be accountable to all stakeholders (not just shareholders) and must allow information about their B Corp Certification performance to be published on the B Lab website. With a score of 136 out of 200, 4G Capital was recently listed in the top 10 B Corp Financial Service providers.
About 4G Capital: 4G Capital employs over 900 employees across Kenya and Uganda. Since its inception in 2013, the company has loaned over 1,750,000 small business working capital loans valued at over $230 million. The company has over 380,000 clients, 81% female, and 77% run micro and SME enterprises in rural areas. 4G Capital clients receive customised business training programs and credit guidance via mobile apps and in-person via a nationwide network of branches. 4G Capital’s unique machine learning technology delivers high-fidelity insight into client risk and affordability. As a result, 4G Capital consistently achieves high collection rates without collateral or refinancing its clients, only lending to viable businesses on terms that are right for them. 4G Capital has positively impacted over 1 million people. Having received multiple industry awards, 4G Capital is now scaling in and expanding its suite of products and services in East Africa. As a B Corporation, 4G Capital champions the movement’s approach to creating shared value and was recently listed in the top 10 B Corporation Financial Service providers worldwide. www.4g-capital.com
Media Contact: lydia@lchconsultancy.com
About B Lab: B Lab is transforming the global economy to benefit all people, communities, and the planet. A leader in economic systems change, our global network creates standards, policies, tools, and programs for business, and we certify companies — known as B Corps — who are leading the way. Our community includes 400,000 workers in over 5,000 B Corps across 80 countries and 155 industries, and more than 200,000 companies manage their impact with the B Impact Assessment and the SDG Action Manager. B Lab has created and led efforts to pass over 50 corporate statutes globally that enable stakeholder governance, with over 10,000 companies using the legal framework. To learn more and join the movement, visit www.bcorporation.net
B Lab Contact: press@bcorporation.ne
