• Equity Bank proposes smartphone financing to boost digital adoption in DRC

• Low ownership persists, with only 8% of population using smartphones

• High costs and low awareness limit uptake despite existing financing options

Equity Bank is proposing to launch a smartphone financing program in the Democratic Republic of Congo that would allow users to buy devices at a reduced cost through installment plans. The initiative aims to accelerate smartphone adoption and, in turn, expand the use of digital services in the country.

The project was presented last week to Augustin Kibassa Maliba, Congo’s minister of digital economy, on the sidelines of a ministerial roundtable in Washington on the digitalization of payments and domestic revenue mobilization. It is part of Equity Bank’s effort to build a strategic partnership with the ministry to support the country’s digital transformation.

“Imagine offering the Congolese people low-cost financed phones, with affordable internet connectivity, so they can open bank accounts and more easily access public services and government programs,” said Willy Mulamba, chief executive of Equity BCDC, the Congolese subsidiary of Equity Group, without providing further details.

A major accessibility gap

The initiative comes as smartphone affordability is widely seen as one of the main barriers to internet adoption across Africa. Only 8% of Congo’s population owned a smartphone in 2024, according to GSMA data. Mobile internet penetration stood at 13%, the same data shows.

In its report Accelerating Smartphone Adoption in Africa, published in December 2025, the GSMA said the median price of an entry-level smartphone stands at around $30, more than half the monthly per capita income in Congo. For people in the bottom 20% to 40% of households, the cost exceeds their entire monthly income, making purchase virtually impossible without financing.

Existing financing options

Mobile operators and other players in the ecosystem have already introduced smartphone financing options in Congo. KaiOS Technologies, in partnership with Mobihive Lab, offers a 4G smartphone financing scheme targeting new users as well as those switching from 2G networks. Telecom operators Vodacom, Airtel and Africell also offer packages combining installment payments with initial call credit and/or data.

Despite these options, most smartphones are still bought in cash. The GSMA attributes this to low awareness of financing options and fears of defaulting on payments, which can lead to the handset being repossessed and the loss of installments already paid.

Isaac K. Kassouwi