From Teller to Street Vendor: The Battle of Steve Muikia vs Corporate Banking

A Teller with a Vision

In April 2010, while working as a teller at Co-operative Bank of Kenya, Stephen Muikia Njongoro recognized a significant gap in the banking sector: the absence of seamless interbank transfers. He envisioned a platform that would let anyone transfer money easily across different banks, without the outdated and cumbersome process of withdrawing cash and depositing it manually.

Inspired, he crafted an innovation named “All in One Banking Innovation,” even pairing it with the slogan “All in one, huduma zote za benki zote” (“all services from all banks in one place”). He officially registered this concept with the Kenya Copyrights Board on February 2, 2015, receiving a certificate for his literary work.

Later that year, on July 14, 2015, he also copyrighted a variation called “Air Money Virtual Bank Transfer Solution Innovation” (Kenya Law).

A Clash with Institutions

Muikia sought guidance from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), which advised him to present his idea to the Kenya Bankers Association (KBA) (Kenya Law). But in mid‑2015, KBA rejected his proposal, citing concerns that it was too costly, threatened competition, and risked undermining individual banks’ branding.

Fast forward to February 2017, when PesaLink was launched—managed by Integrated Payments Services Ltd (IPSL), a KBA subsidiary. Muikia claims it mirrored his concept and even used a nearly identical logo.

By then, PesaLink had already become popular, processing transactions from as low as KSh 10 to as high as KSh 999,999, covering over 30 banks and serving more than three million accounts. By 2019, it had processed over KSh 220 billion.

Taking the Fight to Court

In November 2019, Muikia filed a lawsuit in Nairobi’s Commercial Division of the High Court against KBA, IPSL, and CBK. He sought:

• A permanent injunction to stop them from running PesaLink,
• General and exemplary damages—about KSh 1 billion (he cited that banks had earned around KSh 2 billion and demanded half) (Kenya Law).

The Court’s Ruling (and the Silence That Followed)

On 21 July 2023, the High Court dismissed Muikia’s case. The judge reasoned, and Muikia disputes, that he had referred to the idea as “just an idea,” and that he falsely claimed to be a Co‑operative Bank staffer when he developed it (Change.org, (Kenya Law).

More troubling, Muikia says he never received the written judgment, making it impossible to appeal, despite repeated requests. The Judicial Service Commission (JSC) acknowledged the matter on 5 March 2025, stating they were “seized of the matter,” but five months later, he still has no written ruling, no appeal filed, and “No Justice. Nothing,” he laments.

Meanwhile, he claims he survives by hawking tissues on the streets of Nairobi while major financial institutions continue to profit from his alleged innovation.

The Current Developments (As of July 2025)

• The petition initiated by Muikia on 19 July 2025 via Change.org has gained traction, calling on CBK, KBA, and IPSL to credit and compensate him, and demanding that the judiciary release the written judgment and that the JSC independently investigate the case.