Case Study: How SMICO Accelerated Loan Processing and Optimized Risk Management with Juakali

Background

SMICO, based in the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been digitizing its loan origination processes with Juakali since late 2021. Initially focusing on its Professional Loan product, which makes up 80% of its loan portfolio, SMICO has since expanded its use of Juakali to include emergency loans (SayiSayi) and loan renewals.

SMICO primarily serves SME clients, with loan amounts ranging from $500 to $250,000 and an average loan size of $17,000. As the organization scaled, the limitations of manual processes became increasingly evident, leading to delays, inefficiencies, and high operational costs.

Before Juakali: Manual, Time-Consuming Loan Processing

Before implementing Juakali, SMICO’s loan processing time averaged 14 to 20 days. The process was heavily manual:

• Loan officers collected client data in the field and manually entered it into Excel upon returning to the office.
• Physical loan files were passed between departments, leading to delays in approvals.
• Data verification involved multiple back-and-forth exchanges via email and Skype.
• Credit committees required extensive document scanning and manual consolidation before making a final decision.
• Physical document storage required additional office space, increasing operational costs.

These inefficiencies slowed down disbursements, added administrative burden, and made it difficult to track bottlenecks in the approval process.

The Impact of Juakali

With Juakali, SMICO transitioned to a fully digital loan origination process, drastically improving efficiency and risk management:

• Loan processing time reduced by 50%—now averaging 7 to 10 days, with a target of 3 to 5 days.
• Increased productivity—credit officers can now process loan applications within one business day, compared to multiple days previously.
• Portfolio growth of 35% in 2024, expanding from $21 million to $30 million.

How Juakali Improved Loan Origination at SMICO

1. Faster and More Transparent Loan Processing

With Juakali, loan officers submit applications directly from the field, triggering an automated review process:

• Supervisors receive an instant notification and can conduct verifications directly in the system.
• If additional verification is required, branch managers are notified and can review or conduct field visits.
• Risk analysts assess applications digitally, request missing information online, and escalate approvals as needed.
• Final approvals by senior management happen in real time, significantly cutting down decision-making delays.

Additionally, after disbursement, Juakali automatically schedules field verification tasks to ensure that loan funds are used for their intended purpose. This eliminates the need for manual reminders and helps agents stay on top of their tasks. As one field agent noted:

“Being able to carry out loan utilization checks on time, without my supervisors having to remind me, has been a great advantage.”

2. Improved Risk Management and Oversight

Juakali enables SMICO to enforce approval thresholds based on loan size:

• For loans under $10,000, the supervisor is responsible for verification.
• For loans above $10,000, verification is handled by the branch manager before moving to final approval.

To further mitigate risk, Juakali automatically adjusts verification responsibilities based on loan performance:

• If more than 2.5% of loans under $10,000 become overdue, the system escalates verification duties to the branch manager instead of the supervisor.
• Decision reports provide clear visibility into bottlenecks, helping management pinpoint where delays occur.

Key Benefits for SMICO

• Loan disbursement is twice as fast, reducing delays for customers.
• Supervisors and managers have full visibility into where applications get delayed.
• Loan officers spend more time on customer engagement rather than administrative tasks.
• Risk assessment is more dynamic, with automated adjustments based on real-time performance data.
• Cost savings—reduced reliance on paper files and eliminated the need for extra office space for document storage.

Looking Ahead

With Juakali, SMICO has significantly improved its loan origination process, making approvals faster and risk management more dynamic. The next step is to further reduce processing times to under 5 days and continue refining its risk management framework using Juakali’s automation capabilities.

For financial institutions looking to scale while improving efficiency and control, SMICO’s experience demonstrates the power of digital-first, data-driven loan management.