- Equity Group and Finserve Africa managing director Eva Ngigi Sarwari has died aged 45 while on a business trip to China
- Sarwari joined Equity in 2025 before becoming Finserve Africa's managing director in April 2026
- She spent more than two decades in banking and digital payments, holding senior positions at Visa, Standard Chartered and Stanbic Bank Kenya
Harry Ivan Mboto is a Current Affairs and Politics Editor at TUKO.co.ke, covering general news. Mboto has five years of journalism experience and joined TUKO.co.ke in 2024
Eva Ngigi Sarwari, Equity Group’s director of payments and international banking and managing director of Finserve Africa, has died aged 45 while on a business trip to China.
Source: UGC
Her death was announced by colleagues in a statement on Tuesday, October 20, who described the loss as sudden and deeply shocking.
“It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of our dear friend and colleague, Eva Ngigi Sarwari,” the statement read, as quoted by techcabal.
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Her colleagues said they would provide further updates as more information became available. They did not disclose the circumstances surrounding her death or when she died.
Eva Ngigi Sarwari's promising career
Sarwari had built a career spanning more than two decades in banking, digital financial services and electronic payments, working with some of the industry's biggest institutions.
She joined Equity Group in January 2025 as group director responsible for payments and international banking, overseeing the execution of the bank's payments strategy across Africa.
In April 2026, she took on an additional leadership role as managing director of Finserve Africa, Equity's subsidiary specialising in payments and digital financial services. Her responsibilities included steering the company's strategy, commercial operations and overall business direction.
Where did Eva Ngigi Sarwari work previously?
Her appointment followed more than four years at Visa, where she served as senior director and country manager between September 2020 and December 2024. She oversaw the company's business operations and growth strategy in Kenya, South Sudan and Somalia.
Before joining Visa, Sarwari worked at SC Ventures, Standard Chartered's venture-building division, as a venture lead in 2020.
She had previously spent more than seven years at Standard Chartered, where she held several positions in transaction banking. From July 2017 to January 2020, she served as head of transaction banking for commercial banking, helping shape the lender's strategy in Kenya and the wider East African region.
Her work focused on growing revenue, developing relevant financial products and accelerating digital transformation. She also worked with development organisations and public-sector clients across East Africa.
Sarwari joined Standard Chartered in November 2012 after working at Stanbic Bank Kenya for slightly more than two years, managing sales of transactional banking products and services. She began her career at Co-operative Bank of Kenya in June 2005 as a relationship manager.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Eva’s family, friends and colleagues during this difficult time,” her colleagues added.
Who was Rosemary Koech-Kimwatu?
The death of Sarwari comes just months after that of Rosemary Chemutai Koech-Kimwatu, a 40-year-old head of data protection at KCB Bank Group.
Chemutai died at her home in Ngong, Kajiado County, on August 21. Her passing was followed by a family dispute over her burial, with her husband, Kevin Migwe Kimwatu, preferring their home in Matasia, Ngong, while her parents and sister wanted her laid to rest at the family home in Chepseon, Kericho County.
The disagreement escalated into a court battle, but Rosemary was eventually buried in Kericho on August 28, despite interim court orders restraining the burial.
Source: TUKO.co.ke