PHOTO CAPTION: Mwananchi Credit CEO Mr Dennis Mombo
Rogue shylock firm Mwanachi Credit has had to follow up on its loan to the grave.
In October 2019, a Mr Solomon Mwangi took a loan of Sh421,459 from the company. He later took another loan of Sh200,000 in May last year (2021) and defaulted, forcing Mwananchi Credit to seize the vehicle.
His sister Anne Karinge’s vehicle was used as collateral for the loan.
Unfortunately, Mr Mwangi passed on and the shylock was at pains on how to recover their money.
The lender soon struck a deal with Ms Karinge to repay the loan, she did repay Sh200,000 and moved to court to have her car, which was seized in February 2022, given back.
Mwananchi Credit was ordered to release the vehicle by the Small Claims Court.
Instead of releasing it, and with pure greed of heart, turning against an agreement. They moved to the High Court.
It is reported that the High Court ordered Ms Karinge to deposit a further Sh126,000 as a condition for the release of her vehicle.
Justice Alfred Mabeya directed Anne Karinge to deposit the money in an interest-earning account bearing the names of her advocates and of the lender.
“It is true that if the vehicle is released to the respondent as ordered, then there is a real risk that the only guarantee of the payment of the debt owed to the appellant may be lost. That might lead to substantial loss. But the respondent is also entitled to the fruits of her judgment,” the judge said.
The lender said the loan had ballooned to about Sh900,000 and doesn’t know how to recover it, once the vehicle is released.
Ms Karinge opposed the case saying it was a ploy to prevent her from enjoying the fruits of successful litigation.
She said the lender had not demonstrated the substantial loss that it would suffer or how the appeal would be rendered useless if the vehicle is released.
Shylock
It is advisable to live below one’s means.
It is also advisable to stay away from greedy lenders such as Mwananchi Credit, which even after getting paid since 2019, let’s assume a total loan amount being Sh621459 deduct Ms Karinge’s payment of Sh200,000 it comes to Sh421,459, without including or deducting the money his brother had paid, this loan still balloons to Sh900,000?
That cannot happen in a properly regulated market. If someone defaults, the loan stops accruing interest, as is done by some banks. Banks also have insurance to cater for the loan in case of a default caused by death.
The microfinance sector must be regulated to weed out shylocks.
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