M-PESA

M-PESA is a mobile phone-based money transfer and payments service for individuals who need to store value, send money, and pay for everyday services using a mobile handset.

Key capabilities include:

• Cash in and cash out via agent networks, allowing users to deposit and withdraw local currency at participating agents (such as retail outlets and airtime resellers).
• Send, withdraw, and request money using mobile flows designed for fast person-to-person transfers; transfers use PIN security and can include recipient name confirmation (Hakikisha) and transaction reversal in supported scenarios.
• Pay for goods and services with Lipa na M-PESA, including merchant payments via Paybill and Till, plus Pochi la Biashara for sending money to micro-merchant business wallets.
• Credit and savings options offered through partnerships (for example, products such as Mshwari), supporting savings and loan access directly from a phone.

Available on Android and iOS (with core service access also supported on basic phones via USSD or SIM toolkit in supported markets).

Target audience: B2C, primarily individual mobile subscribers who want mobile money for personal transfers, bill payments, airtime purchases, and day-to-day merchant payments.

Notable in African markets for its long-running branchless mobile money model (launched in 2007 by Vodafone and Safaricom) and its expansion across multiple countries, including Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, DRC, Lesotho, Ghana, Egypt, Afghanistan, South Africa, and Ethiopia, supporting financial access for users who may not rely on traditional bank branches.