Symba Workflow can collect a loan application, submit one loan to Symba Microbanking, coordinate independent review, and confirm the resulting decision on that same loan. The enabled borrower modes and loan products depend on the organization's configuration.
An application begins through an enabled authenticated channel such as Symba USSD. Depending on the configured journey, the application may identify an individual client, a group, or both a group and an individual member.
An application started in Symba USSD begins its Preparation stage while applicant information is collected. For an individual application, Symba Workflow compares the normalized applicant phone number with active Symba Microbanking clients. This also applies when the caller is applying for someone else. When exactly one active client matches, the client is linked automatically. No automatic link is made when there is no active match or when more than one active client matches.
Saving an application records the information collected so far. It does not approve or disburse the loan.
An organization may require applicant consent at the end of a Symba USSD loan journey. Symba Workflow stores the versioned terms identity, a deterministic terms hash, the acceptance time, and the channel evidence before allowing the application to continue. Declining does not withdraw the saved application; a later matching USSD session can resume at the same consent step. Editing consent-relevant application data invalidates an earlier acceptance.
Authorized staff can link the application to the appropriate Symba Microbanking client or group. If an individual applicant is not yet a client, the loan application may require a related client-onboarding application before it can continue.
Before review, authorized staff can correct the applicant phone number, borrower type, national identity number, loan product, requested amount, purpose, and optional linked savings account. The savings-account list contains active accounts belonging to the linked borrower client. Staff can replace or clear the selection while correcting an application. The borrower type cannot change after a borrower or related client-onboarding application has been linked.
The readiness checklist covers application details, any configured applicant consent, client selection, any required client onboarding, and the registration fee. Client linking, consent acceptance, related onboarding completion, and confirmed payment update the checklist automatically. When every required item is complete, authorized staff use "Submit for review".
Submitting the completed application creates or updates one submitted loan in Symba Microbanking before the application enters review. Symba Workflow verifies that a selected savings account is still active and belongs to the borrower. For an individual loan, the account is linked during loan submission. For a GLIM loan, Symba Workflow creates or recovers the member child loan and then links the savings account to that child before entering Review. If validation or linkage fails, the application remains at the submission step with Failed attention until staff correct or clear the selection and retry. The application detail shows the Microbanking loan reference and authoritative status.
A reviewer with review authorization may approve, reject, or request a correction. A correction returns the application to Preparation for permitted changes by authorized staff; resubmission updates the same Microbanking loan and preserves its original submission date.
Approval approves the submitted loan in Symba Microbanking. Rejection rejects that same loan. Withdrawal of an application that already has a Microbanking loan withdraws that same loan. Symba Workflow remains in the Finalizing phase until the requested action is confirmed.
The application reaches Finished with the corresponding outcome only after confirmation. A technical failure remains at the applicable submission or finalization step with Failed attention and can be retried after the underlying issue is corrected.
Loan approval does not disburse the loan. A linked active savings account makes the approved loan eligible for the configured Symba Payments Disburse to Savings method. Normal approval and disbursement controls continue to apply.