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Tugende Kenya 2026: Is It Still Lending? Boda Options

What Tugende is, what its own site says about Kenya, how its lease-to-own boda model works, and the CBK-licensed boda lenders to compare it with.

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by Reviewed by Michael Mwangi 6 min read Updated 19 October 2026Verified 19 Oct 2026

What Tugende is

Tugende is an asset-finance company that started in Uganda. It finances motorcycles for boda riders on a lease-to-own basis, and also lists special hire taxis, matatus, boat engines, smartphones, salon equipment, shop fridges and sewing machines. Its homepage says clients own the asset "in 24 months or less", with training, life and medical insurance and safety gear included.

What its site says about Kenya

  • The About page says "Operating in Uganda and Kenya".
  • A news post dated 1 November 2019 announces the first Kenyan branch, in Kisumu.
  • The newest news item on the site is from 14 March 2024.
  • The contact details are info@goTugende.com and a Ugandan toll-free line. No Kenyan number is listed.

How to apply

The site has a short web form asking for your name, National ID and phone number. It does not publish the documents you will need, the deposit, the weekly payment or the repayment paybill. If someone gives you a number to pay, confirm it with Tugende in writing first and check it on our paybill scam checker.

Licence status

Tugende is not on the CBK Digital Credit Providers directory dated 29 September 2026. The lenders that most Kenyan riders compare, Watu Credit and Mogo Auto, are both on it. A CBK-licensed lender is bound by the CBK code on debt collection and CRB listing, which gives you a complaint route through CBK.

Licensed boda lenders to compare

  • Watu Credit: up to 24 months, one guarantor, original ID and KRA PIN, and an M-PESA line active for 6 months. See Watu boda financing.
  • Mogo: down payment from 20 percent, deposits from KES 19,000 for a used boda and KES 30,000 for a new one, over 52 to 78 weeks. See Mogo.
  • Electric bodas: Spiro, Roam and Ampersand through partner lenders. See electric boda financing.
  • A SACCO loan if you have savings history. See Watu vs Mogo vs SACCO.

Sources, read 19 October 2026

  1. Tugende homepage, About, Products and Services, News and Get a Motorcycle pages, gotugende.com.
  2. Tugende launches in Kenya, gotugende.com, 1 November 2019.
  3. CBK Directory of Digital Credit Providers, 29 September 2026.
  4. Watu Kenya mobility page and Mogo FAQ, read the same day.

FAQ

Does Tugende operate in Kenya in 2026?

Its About page says it operates in Uganda and Kenya. The only Kenya-specific item on its site is a November 2019 post about opening its first Kenyan branch in Kisumu. Its newest news item is from March 2024 and the only contact address is in Kampala. We could not confirm current Kenyan branches, so call before you travel to one.

Is Tugende licensed by CBK?

Tugende is not on the CBK Directory of Digital Credit Providers dated 29 September 2026. Watu Credit and Mogo Auto, the two largest boda lenders in Kenya, are on it.

How does Tugende financing work?

Tugende says it is lease-to-own: you pay over time and own the asset in 24 months or less, with training, life and medical insurance and safety gear included. Besides bodas it lists special hire taxis, matatus, boat engines, smartphones and small business equipment. It does not publish deposits or instalment amounts.

What is the Tugende website?

gotugende.com. The address tugende.com is a parked domain and is not Tugende.

Further reading

Curated external sources we cite. Open in a new tab.