Safaricom’s mobile money platform M-PESA has reached a major milestone in Kenya’s digital finance landscape. Safaricom announced on 6 March 2026 that M‑PESA now serves 40 million monthly active customers in Kenya. The milestone comes 19 years after the service launched in 2007.
The achievement highlights how mobile money has transformed daily financial activity across the country including it’s frequent use in the iGaming industry. What began as a simple transfer tool now supports payments, lending, savings, and investment services used widely across Kenya.
Safaricom Chief Executive Peter Ndegwa said the milestone reflects the company’s efforts to expand digital financial access across the country. He noted that Safaricom continues to strengthen tools that help customers manage payments, savings, and investments.
From simple transfers to a financial ecosystem
M-PESA originally launched as a basic person-to-person money transfer service designed for remittances. Over time, the platform expanded into a broad digital financial ecosystem used by households, traders, banks, and institutions. It now supports a wide range of everyday financial activities.
Customers can access merchant payments, credit facilities, savings services, and investment products through the platform. These services include products such as Fuliza overdraft, KCB M-PESA loans, Ziidi Money Market Fund, and Ziidi Trader.
Additional services include Lipa na M-PESA merchant payments, Pochi la Biashara business wallets, and Global Pay. The expansion of services has significantly strengthened the platform’s role in Kenya’s financial system. Today, M-PESA stands as Safaricom’s largest revenue engine, contributing more than 40% of Safaricom’s service revenue.
Customer growth and market scale
M-PESA’s customer growth over the past decade shows rapid expansion followed by gradual market maturity. Monthly active users increased from 9.8 million in 2012 to 40 million in 2026. The platform added more than 30 million users over the past fourteen years.
Growth accelerated during the mid-2010s as Safaricom expanded its nationwide agent network. At the same time, the company introduced merchant payments through Lipa na M-PESA, encouraging wider adoption among businesses. Customer numbers rose from 12.16 million in 2014 to 20.55 million in 2018 as small businesses and retail merchants embraced mobile payments.
Adoption increased further during the pandemic period when digital transactions replaced cash across many sectors. Users grew from 22.64 million in 2019 to 28.31 million in 2021 during that period. Growth continued in subsequent years as customers reached 30.53 million in 2022 and 32.11 million in 2023. The platform later climbed to about 35.8 million in FY2025 before reaching 40 million in 2026.
Revenue growth and economic impact
Safaricom’s financial results also reflect the growing importance of mobile money services. Total Safaricom revenue reached KSh388.7 billion in FY2025, compared with KSh 310.9 billion in FY2023 and KSh 249.1 billion ($1.93 billion) in FY2019.
Mobile money revenue alone reached KSh 161.3 billion in FY2025. This figure increased from KSh 140.1 billion ($1.08 billion) in FY2024 and KSh 117.2 billion ($907.12 million) in FY2023. Transaction activity on the platform also remains substantial.
M-PESA processed more than 21.9 billion transactions valued at about KSh 20.2 trillion ($156.35 billion) during the six months to September 2025. The payment network now connects households, merchants, and institutions through a nationwide mobile financial infrastructure. As digital payments become increasingly central to everyday commerce, M-PESA continues to play a critical role in Kenya’s financial ecosystem.
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