Female entrepreneurs are demonstrating stronger loan repayment performance than their male counterparts, with default rates among women-owned businesses 2.5 times lower than those recorded by male borrowers, according to Moniepoint’s 2025 Impact Report.
The report highlights a significant shift in financing for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises, showing that women-led businesses are not only maintaining stronger credit discipline but are also receiving a growing share of formal business financing.
According to the report, loans extended to women-owned businesses increased by more than 300 per cent in 2025, raising the share of Moniepoint’s total credit portfolio allocated to female entrepreneurs to 36 per cent.
The figure substantially exceeds the traditional industry benchmark of between 16 per cent and 25 per cent and reflects broader efforts within the financial technology and banking sectors to reduce the long-standing gender financing gap facing women entrepreneurs.
For many female business owners, the loans also represented their first entry into the formal credit system.
The report showed that 62 per cent of surveyed female entrepreneurs received their first formal business loan through Moniepoint.
Across the institution’s broader merchant network, three out of every four businesses that obtained credit were first-time borrowers, underscoring the role of alternative financial platforms in extending formal credit to entrepreneurs who had previously operated outside conventional lending structures.
“When women receive access to credit, the ripple effect on repayment rates and business stability is undeniable,” the report stated, pointing to what it described as stronger risk profiles among female-led enterprises.
Moniepoint said more than $700 million in credit was disbursed to MSMEs during 2025, with the financing producing measurable improvements in business performance.
Merchants who received credit recorded an average 36 per cent increase in transaction value, while 86 per cent of beneficiaries reported higher overall earnings.
The report further showed that 88 per cent of businesses that received financing recorded some form of expansion.
The improved repayment performance among female borrowers came amid rapid growth across Moniepoint’s retail and commercial operations.
According to the report, the institution processed more than $250 billion in transaction volume during the year and served over 20 million businesses and individual users.
Businesses supported through the Moniepoint ecosystem employed more than eight million people in 2025, while 27 per cent of surveyed merchants said they expanded their workforce after obtaining financing.
Businesses supported through the Moniepoint ecosystem employed more than eight million people in 2025, while 27 per cent of surveyed merchants said they expanded their workforce after obtaining financing.
The findings suggest that improving access to formal credit, particularly for women-owned businesses, could have wider economic benefits beyond individual enterprises by supporting employment creation, income growth and business expansion.
The report also indicates that the strong repayment performance of female entrepreneurs could strengthen the case for financial institutions to increase lending to women-led businesses, particularly in markets where lack of formal credit history has traditionally limited their access to capital.