M-PESA, Safaricom’s mobile money platform, has reached 34 million Kenyan users, marking a new milestone. The platform, which will mark its 18th anniversary in March 2025, has evolved from a basic mobile payment service to a comprehensive financial solution that provides insurance, investments, savings, and credit.

“We are immensely proud to reach 34 million M-PESA customers in Kenya,” said Safaricom CEO Dr. Peter Ndegwa. “This accomplishment underscores our dedication to deliver frictionless, always on and secure financial services to our customers.”

A nationwide network of over 300,000 agents supports the platform’s enormous reach, guaranteeing that financial services are available even in distant locations.

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M-Pesa’s insurance solutions support 1.5 million enterprises 

The platform’s ongoing development is demonstrated by recent advancements.

M-PESA has just obtained an insurance intermediary licence to provide complete insurance solutions, and it currently supports over 1.5 million enterprises through merchant payment methods.

M-Pesa’s Ratiba to settle recurring debts

M-PESA Ratiba, a new mobile money standing order solution, was introduced in October.

Over 1 million opt-ins and over 260,000 transactions were made possible by the functionality in just one month.

Customers can use this feature to settle recurring debts on a weekly, monthly, or annual basis or to send money automatically.

Additionally, the platform created the Daraja platform, which allows companies to use APIs to incorporate M-PESA services into their point-of-sale systems, mobile apps, and websites.

In addition to supporting over 40,000 integrations, this has fostered a sizable developer community of over 90,000.

M-Pesa contributing significantly to Kenya’s economy 

In addition to these developments, the mobile money service has significantly increased economic opportunities for millions of Kenyans by propelling financial inclusion in the country from 26.7 percent in 2006 to 83.7 percent in 2021.

The network operator has gone above and beyond to engage its consumers by offering prizes and resolving their problems throughout various regions of Kenya, as evidenced by the continuing Sambaza Furaha na Safaricom Caravan, which is presently on its fourth regional tour.

The M-PESA platform is key to Safaricom’s strategic objective to become Africa’s premier purpose-led technology firm by 2030, as it transforms Kenyans’ access to economic possibilities and financial management.

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All you need to know about M-Pesa

M-PESA was introduced by Safaricom in 2006. The product is called M-PESA since “Pesa” is the Swahili word for money and the “M” is for mobile. The service has grown rapidly since launch, and is currently used by over 34 million subscribers.

M-PESA is an SMS-based system that enables users to deposit, send, and withdraw funds using their mobile phone. Customers do not need to have a bank account and can transact at any of the country’s over 300,000 agent outlets.

Registration and deposits are free and most other transactions are priced based on a tiered structure to allow even the poorest users to be able to use the system at a reasonable cost. Transaction values are typically small, ranging from five dollars to USD 30.

The service was initially developed by the Vodafone Group which owns a 40 percent stake in Safaricom and the six months pilot phase of the project was partly funded by the UK Department for International Development.

The current arrangement between Safaricom and Vodafone Group is a revenue share model where Safaricom controls the on-the-ground operation of the product and Vodafone Group manages the development and delivery of the technical service.

An M-PESA Holding Company Limited was registered for the launch of the service and is controlled by directors that are independent of Safaricom Limited. This company acts as a trustee for M-PESA customers and holds all funds from the M-PESA business in trust to ensure that those funds are safeguarded at all times.

M-PESA was the first product of its kind to be introduced in Kenya and is generally viewed as a successful implementation that should be used as a model for other developing countries.