SchoolPay, the digital education payments platform operated by Fincom Technologies, has partnered with Stanbic Bank Uganda to launch the country’s first digital lending marketplace for schools. The new Stanbic FlexiLoan on SchoolPay allows schools to instantly view their loan limits, apply online, and receive funds within 24-48 hours — a major step toward easing long-standing financing challenges in Uganda’s education sector.
For more than a decade, SchoolPay has digitised fee collection for thousands of schools. This next step in the ecosystem now connects verified financial data to real-time credit access, providing schools with timely financing for both operational and development needs.
Fincom Technologies is a wholly owned subsidiary of Service Cops Limited, a pan-African technology and outsourcing powerhouse providing digital financial solutions, enterprise platforms, and business process services across multiple African markets, partnering with over 25 banks and payment aggregators while supporting more than 25 million customers in Africa.
The company’s vision remains to build a fully-fledged African technology group that drives innovation across every sector and this School Financing partnership with Stanbic Bank is a testament to it.
Positioning SchoolPay as a Full Education Value-Chain Platform
Fincom CEO Charity Atukwatsa said the launch marks a new phase in SchoolPay’s evolution.
“At SchoolPay, we have always believed in the transformative power of education. For years, our platform has helped schools digitise fee collection and administration. Today, we want to take a bolder step forward by empowering and unlocking access to finance for schools… enrolling them to maintain quality standards, invest in infrastructure and focus on what matters most.”
She emphasised that the solution is rooted in collaboration:
“We are not just offering a product; we are creating a platform for transformation, one that will strengthen the education sector… leveraging data-driven insights to provide timely, responsible and transparent financing.”
Stanbic Bank Anchors the Lending Marketplace
Stanbic Bank Uganda is the first financial institution to lend on the platform.
Tunde Thorpe, Executive Head for Business and Commercial Banking, said the partnership aligns directly with the bank’s purpose.
“Our purpose is to drive Uganda’s growth, and there is no greater engine for that growth than education.”
He noted that the bank’s commitment to the sector was demonstrated during the pandemic:
“This sector went through quite a bit… nearly two years of closure. But we were unwavering. We restructured facilities… and even forgave unpaid accrued interest.”
Thorpe said the new solution advances Stanbic’s digital transformation:
“Through this partnership, Stanbic will provide digital loan access directly within the SchoolPay platform… up to UGX1 billion aligned to the school cashflow cycles. The loan processing itself is real-time… no requirement for any physical branch visit.”
A Decade of Insight Driving a Financing Breakthrough
Fincom Technologies Board Chairman Joseph Ndiho Kiiza said the new digital lending marketplace is the culmination of more than ten years of work to understand and solve the biggest pain points across Uganda’s education ecosystem.
He noted that SchoolPay was always designed to evolve beyond fee collection into a platform that supports every actor in the education value chain.
“We look at the holistic picture. We look at the entire ecosystem. We want to be able to solve the challenges that are there for every actor, whether it’s a parent, whether it’s a school, whether it’s a bank or a telecom, a supplier, a content creator in education. We want to be able to come to your pain point and solve that pain point.”
Ndiho emphasized that access to timely and affordable financing remains one of the sector’s most persistent challenges.
“We know that financing is one of the biggest pillars in sorting out the mess around education… Rather than worry about where to get food for the students or salaries for the teachers, we want you to concentrate on delivering a good learning experience.”
He added that SchoolPay’s new lending capability is built to respond to those realities in real time.
“At the comfort of my school, I can log in, make an application, and I will know exactly how much I qualify for… I should be able to have this money within a day or two, and with time as we improve, in hours or even in minutes.”
Looking ahead, Ndiho positioned the solution as a catalyst for change well beyond Uganda.
Breaking Barriers: Charles Mudiwa on Intergenerational Leadership at Makerere “This solution is going to create a revolution in financing, and we believe a number of industries should be able to pick a leaf from what we have done today.”
He added that Uganda is the natural launch point for a model that Fincom will scale across the continent.
“We are beginning this journey in Uganda… We do this in many other African countries, and we are particularly elated that this journey begins here with Stanbic Bank.”
Government and Sector Leaders Welcome the Innovation
Harriet Ssenkali, Acting Commissioner for Private Schools & Institutions at the Ministry of Education and Sports, said the initiative addresses critical challenges in the education sector.
“Financing education can be a daunting challenge for many institutions… private schools have high operational costs yet have high dependency on tuition fees only, with inconsistent payment challenges.”
She added that innovation must be matched with responsibility: “It is my humble prayer that you exercise caution and responsibility when utilising the digital school loan program… loans should not become a burden passed onto the parents.”
Didas Orikiriza, Executive Director of the National Private Education Institutions Association (NPEIA), said the lending solution fills a major gap in the sector.
“The trend is very inflexible… 2% pay on day one. In the first month we collect 60%… and overall our collection is always at 70%. We don’t collect 100% fees.”
He noted that the FlexiLoan is particularly suited for schools’ operational pressures:
“If a school wants money, come to us. We are flexible. Decision-making is very easy… So when the bank gives us timely loans, it is easier for us to keep schools running.”
Margaret Nakintu, Director of St. Francis Xavier Primary School, shared how quickly and seamlessly the FlexiLoan supported her school at a critical moment. After being informed that her school was eligible, she logged into the system, completed the application “very fast,” and received continuous support from both the SchoolPay and Stanbic teams.
She explained that the loan was approved on Monday, 17 November, and that the funds were deposited the very next day.
Before she even checked the account, both Anita and Harriet had called her, and an email notification confirmed the money had arrived.
Nakintu said the speed of the process provided immediate relief for the school, which had been struggling to pay teachers’ salaries.
“It was really a moment of relief and gratitude because we were able to pay salaries… We give gratitude to Stanbic Bank and SchoolPay — your timely support has greatly strengthened our financial capacity.”
She encouraged other school leaders to adopt the solution, noting that partnering with the two institutions is “support you will not regret.”
Digitising the Full Lending Journey
The Stanbic FlexiLoan on SchoolPay digitises every step of the process. Schools can view their scored limits, apply online, receive their funds within 24 hours, and manage repayment schedules directly from the SchoolPay dashboard.
The solution requires no collateral, no paperwork, and no physical branch visit.
More importantly, loan terms align with school cashflow cycles—allowing repayment in one, two, or three terms.
The launch in Uganda is the first step in a broader regional expansion. Fincom and its parent company, Service Cops, plan to roll out the digital lending marketplace across all markets where they operate.
Ndiho underscored this continental vision: “We are beginning this journey in Uganda… and we think this is pretty much the beginning. We are going to do more. We want to be able to get the entire ecosystem sorted.”
