The Chief Executive of the Treasury-backed lender, Johnstone Oltetia, said the refinancing firm expects to start lending before the end of the third quarter, which closes on September 30.

The KMRC boss further said that the firm’s operation permit from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) will be ready this month. KMRC is ready to start lending after the regulator completes vetting its staff.

“The CBK has approved the KMRC to operate as a mortgage refinancing institution in principle but the only thing that remains is to have a license,” said Mr Oltetia.

The government owns a 25 percent stake in KMRC, with the rest of the shares held by banks, SACCOs, and microfinance institutions. Its board of directors has been in place since July last year.

KMRC has so far mobilized nearly Ksh40 billion, including Ksh2.2 billion in equity capital, Ksh25 billion committed by the World Bank, and Ksh10 billion from African Development Bank.

The plan to have KMRC finance the lenders will enable Kenyans to get their house loans as banks have gone slow on providing home loans due to a spike in defaults