Few bankers in East Africa are as closely associated with asset finance as Lennox Mugambi. As Group Director, Asset Finance and Business Solutions at NCBA Group, Mugambi leads what is widely regarded as the region’s largest asset finance franchise, a business that has helped shape how companies acquire the vehicles, machinery and equipment that drive economic activity.
Mugambi joined NCBA, then NIC Bank, in 2015 as Deputy Director of Asset Finance after holding senior positions at Standard Chartered Bank Kenya, Stanbic Bank Kenya and Barclays Bank of Kenya, where he served as Head of Asset Finance. Over more than two decades in banking, he has built a reputation as one of Kenya’s foremost specialists in structured asset financing, particularly in transport, logistics, construction and industrial equipment.
Under his leadership, NCBA has entrenched its dominance of Kenya’s asset finance market, controlling an estimated 34 to 37 per cent market share. The bank’s asset finance portfolio stood at approximately KSh45 billion (US$350 million) in 2023, having grown steadily over the years as demand for productive assets increased across East Africa. In the same year, NCBA financed assets worth more than KSh25 billion (US$194 million) for over 6,000 customers, while profit before tax from the division more than doubled to KSh1.9 billion (US$15 million), underlining the business’s growing contribution to group earnings.
A key pillar of Mugambi’s strategy has been the development of a broad ecosystem of original equipment manufacturer and dealer partnerships. NCBA works with some of East Africa’s leading automotive and equipment distributors, including Simba Corporation, distributor of Mitsubishi, FUSO and Mahindra brands; CFAO Mobility Kenya, representing Toyota, Suzuki, Volkswagen and Yamaha; Car & General; Mobikey Truck and Bus; MAN Truck & Bus; and dealers of Hyundai Construction Equipment and Randon trailers. Through these partnerships, the bank offers embedded financing solutions that enable businesses to acquire assets with flexible repayment structures and high financing ratios.
Mugambi has also overseen NCBA’s evolution from a traditional lender into a broader mobility and leasing solutions provider. Through NCBA Leasing, the bank has executed some of Kenya’s most significant fleet leasing transactions, including a KSh1.2 billion (US$9.3 million) agreement to lease 250 vehicles to the National Police Service, one of the country’s largest public sector fleet leasing deals. The leasing business has since expanded into operational leasing, fleet management and renewable energy financing.
More recently, NCBA introduced lease to own solutions for solar photovoltaic systems and executive vehicles, offering repayment periods of up to ten years, among the longest tenures available in the Kenyan market. The initiative marked the bank’s entry into green leasing and reinforced its ambition to become an integrated provider of mobility and business asset solutions rather than simply a financier.
Mugambi holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Economics from Kenyatta University and an Executive MBA from Strathmore Business School. He has further strengthened his leadership credentials through executive programmes at IESE Business School in Spain.
As East Africa continues to invest in infrastructure, logistics, industrialization and energy transition, Lennox Mugambi remains one of the bankers helping businesses acquire the productive assets that power the region’s economic growth.
