For many Kenyans, insurance still sounds expensive, complicated, and out of reach. The numbers reflect that. Kenya's insurance penetration reached 2.63 per cent of GDP in 2025, the highest in a decade, yet it remains well below the global average of about 7 per cent.
The informal sector is a major part of the gap. It accounts for over 80 percent of the workforce, including more than fifteen million traders, boda boda operators and artisans, most of whom have little or no cover. Traditional insurance models have rigid terms, complex paperwork, and high minimum payouts, which often do not fit the daily realities of informal earners.
Reaching them means taking insurance to places they already bank, laying it in simple terms and at prices they can manage.
At Family Bank, we see this gap every day among the MSMEs we serve. Small, and Medium-sized Enterprises (MSMEs) account for approximately 98 percent of all businesses in Kenya and contribute 30 percent to 40 percent of Kenya's Gross Domestic Product (GDP), yet 53 percent remain uninsured, leaving them highly exposed to shifting market conditions, life occurrences and unpredictable policies.
When crisis strike, many Kenyans turn to community fundraising (harambees) or informal savings groups (chamas) rather than formal insurance. These networks provide social solidarity, but they typically take place post-crisis rather than providing protection for unplanned occurrences in advance.
Insurance is not a luxury reserved for the wealthy; it is a tool that protects everything you have worked to build. It is a plan B that can cover your health, life, or assets, allowing your financial plan to hold together when life fails to go as planned.
This is why at Family Bank we introduced Family Bank Bancassurance Intermediary Limited (FBBI), a model that positions us as a bridge between insurance companies, our customers and millions of Kenyans, allowing us to gradually increase insurance penetration by tackling the trust and accessibility deficit that keeps so many people and MSMEs away from insurance.
Through Family Bank Bancassurance Intermediary Limited (FBBI), the bank has forged strategic partnerships with various insurance companies such as Kenya Orient Life Assurance, Kenya Orient Insurance, Sanlam Insurance, APA Insurance, among others to provide more affordable insurance solutions.
These solutions span different areas of life and financial protection, including motor, home, personal accident, medical, life, and education insurance, as well as livestock and marine insurance.
The idea is not that everyone needs all these covers, but that different people have different risks and therefore different protection needs. Savings can help us handle emergencies and investments can help us build wealth, but insurance can help transfer certain financial risks so that one unexpected event does not leave us starting over.
As your life changes, your protection needs can change too. Getting married, having children, buying a home, or starting a business can all introduce new responsibilities worth protecting. This where Family Bank's Bancassurance offers steps in, helping you navigate and prepare for the different seasons of your life.
Our tailor-made solutions, designed around the specific nature of each business and person and backed by affordable pricing and sector expertise, allow us to walk with you at every stage of your journey ensuring you are protected.
