Safaricom is promoting M‑Pesa as an operating system for Kenya’s digital economy, adding savings, investment, insurance and business services to its core mobile‑money offering.

The financial services arm generated KSh182.7 billion in FY2026 revenue, a 13.4 % increase year‑on‑year, and contributed 45.6 % of Safaricom Kenya’s total service revenue.

M‑Pesa processed 46.4 billion transactions worth KSh41.68 trillion in FY2026, averaging about 127 million daily transactions, with the platform handling roughly 150 million transactions per day according to the CEO.

The service now offers credit to 18 million customers – a 117.9 % rise – and wealth products with assets under management of KSh21 billion, up from KSh9.8 billion a year earlier.

Merchant participation grew to about 3.1 million, an 81.5 % increase, generating KSh13.3 billion in revenue, while the business app recorded 458,900 active merchants, up 52.5 %.

A notable new offering, Ziidi Trader, lets users buy listed securities through the M‑Pesa app with a minimum investment of US$1, developed with the Nairobi Securities Exchange and Kestrel Capital.

Safaricom’s CEO Peter Ndegwa says the expansion aims to democratise access to payments, savings, investments and insurance, positioning the platform as a central hub for both consumers and businesses.

To support the growing digital services, Safaricom invests US$400‑500 million annually in Kenya, with roughly half allocated to network infrastructure, expanding 4G coverage to over 95 % of the population and boosting fibre connectivity.

AI underpins the company’s super‑app strategy, enabling personalised services, fraud detection and data‑driven customer segmentation, which the CEO describes as treating each user as a “segment of one”.

Safaricom’s broader ambition is to transition from a telecom operator to Africa’s leading purpose‑led technology company, leveraging M‑Pesa’s extensive reach while navigating regulatory and competitive challenges.