When Equity Bank launched Equitel in 2014, it was the first serious bet that the future of banking was not in branches. Within two years, the Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs) had 2.7 million activations.
Just over a decade later, Equity’s FY2025 results show that 98.2% of all transactions now happen outside a physical branch, with 88.4% processed through digital channels. The growth has been consistent from 77.8% in FY2018 to the current 88.4%.
“Over 98% of customer transactions were conducted outside branches, with 88.4% processed through digital channels, reflecting continued demand for digital services with increased investment in customer‑centric digital infrastructure.”
– Equity statement.
Concurrently, physical branches’ share of transaction volumes has fallen to 1.8%.
| Digital channel share 88.4% FY2025 (up from 77.8% in FY2018) | Transactions outside branches 98.2% of all transactions FY2025 | Branch share 1.8% down from 3.2% in FY2018 |
Equitel is the Digital Channel of Choice
Equitel takes the lead among digital channels, with transaction volumes on the platform growing 30% year-on-year to 400.9 million in FY2025. However, it’s a platform that bank customers use for low-value transactions.
Pay With Equity (PWE), an interoperable platform enabling merchants to accept payments from major mobile money platforms, handled 403.1 million transactions, marking a 16% year-over-year increase.
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Equity Mobile and USSD added 174.3 million transactions, up 17%, and delivered KES 4.36 trillion in transaction value. This represented a 37% jump from the previous year.
The physical branch, by contrast, processed 19.5 million transactions worth KES 4.96 trillion, significant by value but a fraction of the total volume of transactions.
Equity Bank Branches Handle the Big Bucks
The branch’s declining transaction volume tells only half the story. Despite processing just 19.5 million transactions in FY2025, a fraction of Equitel’s 400.9 million, the branch still handled KES 4.96 trillion in value, roughly matching the entire Equity Mobile and USSD channel.
| Channel | Volume (millions) | Value (Kshs billions) | Avg per transaction |
| Branch | 19.5 | 4,963.2 | KShs 254,523 |
| Equity Mobile + USSD | 174.3 | 4,360.7 | KShs 25,019 |
| PWE | 403.1 | 4,560.0 | KShs 11,313 |
| Agency | 67.1 | 1,948.7 | KShs 29,041 |
| Equitel | 400.9 | 1,433.9 | KShs 3,577 |
The average branch transaction is worth approximately KES 254,523, compared to Kshs 3,577 on Equitel and Kshs 11,313 on PWE. If you do the math, on average, a single branch visit is worth 71 transactions on Equitel.
Despite physical branches remaining the primary channel for high-value transactions, both the total volume and value of in-branch activity saw a year-over-year decline in FY25 compared to FY24.
Everything routine has moved largely to digital self-care platforms and a small percentage to agency banking.
The branch has not become irrelevant; it has become specialised, handling the high-value corporate deposits, loan drawdowns, and complex transactions that customers will not, or cannot, complete on a phone.
