On January 5, 2009, with my dreams and ambitions on my sleeve I joined banking as a cleaner,” wrote Ken Lanaya Osano on LinkedIn. “They gave me a mop, soap, bucket and a chance to be anything else I wanted to be.”
He was pursuing a diploma in journalism at the University of Nairobi. Instead, that subordinate job became the catapult that flung him to one of the Africa leads for London-based fintech firm Ebury, after holding senior positions in some of the region’s biggest financial services firms. Today at 36, he is Director of African Business for British payment firm Ebury, which handled global transactions worth Sh2.7 trillion in a year.
On paper, Osano’s job at Ebury is to lead the business relationships and development units in Africa.
But to him, the real-world application is to ensure financial inclusion for all in the world, by providing an affordable money remittance and investment platform that is accessible without a building. It is about removing barriers.
"My goal is global financial inclusion — an affordable, building-free platform that removes barriers."
Ebury offers payment and collection services, forex risk management, lending and cash management services with operations in 29 African countries.
In Africa alone, the firm facilitates the movement of between $30 million (Sh3.8 billion) and $100 million (Sh12.9 billion) monthly. Ebury intends to use Kenya as one of its key hubs in Africa.
At DTB, his first boss, Marion Wanjiku, gave Osano the kick he needed in the backside in the form of a mantra: Life doesn’t owe anyone anything, not even people’s sympathy just because one has suffered. He was raised by his siblings and relatives, having lost his father at six and mother at nine.
On that advice, he put his journalism course on hold and pursued a Bachelor’s Degree Business Administration, graduating in 2015, six years after being promoted to bank teller and later front office operations. And then a Master’s in 2018. He has worked at DTB, Credit Bank, Anvil Shield Group, Afriex, and GTXN.
With friends, Kwanza Africa was born. The group picks four bright underprivileged students each year, and sponsors their education. One of their first beneficiaries is now a manager at DTB.
-Brian Wasuna