Influence of Access to Mobile Banking Services on the Performance of Small and Medium Agro-Processing Enterprises in Kiambu County, Kenya

Small and Medium Agro-Processing Enterprises (SMAPEs) constitute an important component of Kenya's agricultural value chain through value addition, employment creation, income generation, and contribution to national economic growth. Despite their strategic role, many agro-processing SMEs continue to experience weak financial performance characterized by limited business expansion, constrained profitability, unstable cash flows, and low long-term sustainability. Mobile banking services, delivered through digital platforms such as mobile money and mobile wallets, have emerged as one of the most transformative innovations for expanding financial access among small enterprises, yet limited empirical evidence exists on their influence within the agro-processing subsector in Kiambu County. This study sought to determine the influence of access to mobile banking services on the performance of small and medium agro-processing enterprises in Kiambu County, Kenya. The study was anchored on Financial Inclusion Theory, which explains how access to affordable, convenient, and appropriate financial services enhances enterprise participation in economic activity. A descriptive cross-sectional survey design was adopted, targeting 254 registered agro-processing SMEs in Kiambu County, from which a sample of 154 owners and managers was selected using stratified random sampling. Primary data were collected through structured questionnaires, with 147 completed questionnaires returned, representing a response rate of 95.5%. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation analysis, and regression analysis with the aid of SPSS Version 29. The findings revealed that mobile banking services had a positive and statistically significant influence on financial performance, recording a strong positive correlation with financial performance (r = 0.734, p < 0.01), while regression analysis indicated that mobile banking services independently explained 53.9% of the variation in financial performance (R² = 0.539) with a regression coefficient of 0.798 (p < 0.001). The study concluded that mobile banking services are the most influential determinant of financial performance among agro-processing SMEs in Kiambu County, enhancing transaction efficiency, financial accessibility, liquidity management, and business growth. The study recommends continued investment in digital financial infrastructure, strengthening of the security and reliability of mobile banking platforms, deeper integration of mobile banking with savings, credit, insurance, and payment services, and implementation of digital financial literacy programs targeting agro-processing enterprises.