Recognition Citation

Under the leadership of Michael Wilkerson, Tugende has built one of East Africa's most established productive-asset finance platforms for informal entrepreneurs and small businesses. The company reports more than US$60 million in income-generating assets financed, over 52,000 clients or assets supported, 29,000 active clients and 22,000 successful alumni. Its lease-to-own model extends from motorcycles into vehicles, boat engines, refrigeration equipment and other business assets. This scale and diversification underpin his inclusion in the AssetFin100 Africa 2026.