Safaricom’s M-PESA has hit 40 million monthly active customers in Kenya, marking 19 years since the mobile money service launched on March 6, 2007 and underscoring how far mobile-led financial access has come on the continent.
From remittance tool to financial platform
M-PESA launched as a person-to-person money transfer service. It now spans investment and wealth management through Ziidi MMF and Ziidi Trader, credit products including Fuliza and KCB M-PESA, and business tools such as Lipa na M-PESA, Pochi la Biashara, and Global Pay.
That expansion reflects a deliberate strategy Safaricom calls Fintech 2.0, a push to put saving, investing, and money management directly on users’ mobile devices, while tightening fraud prevention and data security.
The inclusion numbers
The milestone carries weight beyond customer counts. Kenya’s financial inclusion rate now stands at 84.8% of the adult population, up from 26.7% in 2006, the year before M-PESA launched. M-PESA generated over KES 161 billion in revenue in the financial year to March 2025.
“Our goal is to give Kenyans, and Africa at large, digital financial tools to empower them to be more prosperous,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO of Safaricom. “Reaching 40 million monthly active customers in Kenya is a milestone we celebrate, as we recommit to enable every Kenyan to transact safely, grow their savings, and build their wealth.”
What comes next
Safaricom operates across Kenya and Ethiopia, keeping over 60 million customers connected and covering more than 99% of Kenya’s population across 2G, 3G, 4G, and 5G networks. The company recorded annual revenues of close to KES 388 billion as at March 2025 and estimated its total economic contribution at KES 1.1 trillion ($8.5 billion) for the same period.
M-PESA’s reach now positions it as the infrastructure through which a growing share of Kenyans build financial lives, not just transfer money. Whether that trajectory continues will depend on how well Safaricom extends those tools beyond its existing base, particularly in lower-income and rural segments where barriers to wealth-building remain highest.
