Platinum Credit Ordered to Pay Sh400,000 for Sending Unsolicited Loan Texts

Platinum Credit Kenya has been ordered to compensate a Kenyan man Sh400,000 after the data regulator found the lender unlawfully used his personal information to push loan promotions without his consent.

The Office of the Data Protection Commissioner ruled that the firm repeatedly sent Samuel Kamau Waweru intrusive marketing texts and calls using data he never provided and without any legal basis to process.

Kamau lodged the complaint in November 2024, accusing Platinum Credit and its agents of relentlessly pestering him with adverts for loan products.

He insisted he had never shared his phone number with the lender and had not agreed to be contacted for promotional purposes.

Investigations confirmed his claims and established that the lender was processing his data unlawfully in breach of the Data Protection Act.

Platinum Credit attempted to deny responsibility by claiming that the woman who contacted Kamau was not one of its agents.

ODPC investigators found this to be untrue and established that she was indeed working for the lender.

The Data Commissioner found the company liable for false claims and for misleading the regulator during the investigation.

In a determination signed on February 24, 2025, Data Commissioner Immaculate Kassait ordered Platinum Credit to pay Kamau Sh400,000 as compensation.

The regulator also issued an enforcement notice requiring the company to comply with data protection laws and recommended prosecution of its directors for knowingly providing false information during the inquiry.

The ruling adds to growing pressure on financial institutions and marketers that unlawfully harvest and exploit personal data to target consumers with aggressive advertising.

The ODPC said parties have 30 days to appeal the decision at the High Court.