
Monthly active users of M-Pesa in Kenya and Tanzania numbered 17.6 million in April through September. Users made a total of 9.3 million transactions per month, and the ecosystem handled 3.2 trillion shillings, or $32 billion U.S., in six months.
It’s been a boon for mobile operator Safaricom, which owns the system, that so many users are in the M-Pesa ecosystem, but the thing about people and their money is that you shouldn’t get between them.
Hey @Safaricomltd #Mpesa disappoints when its much needed, Delays, Delays, Delays, what’s up?! You must be freaking kidding me- #MondayBlues
— Ryan Davis™ (@Ryaandavis) November 28, 2016
#mpesa the only reason I’m still @SafaricomLtd so u u better stop this delays…
— IG_@nishovinski (@nishovinski) November 28, 2016
#Mpesa
very high charges,✔
Very poor services,✔
Very long delays, ✔
Customers kunyeshewa,✔
??— gachau (@_gachau_) November 28, 2016
(Kunyeshawa is a Swahili word meaning “rained upon,” and probably has other, not-so-difficult-to-imagine meanings.)
It’s been busy times for the world’s favorite mobile payment service. M-Pesa is facing new competition from M-Visa (a product, of course, of Visa), and Facebook was falsely rumored to be interested in acquiring the service.
Narendra Modi, the prime minister of India, recently complimented M-Pesa as an alternative cash. Modi recently removed 86% of the cash in circulation in India to clamp down on tax-dodging economic activity. But with all the difficulties its’ been facing, which were reported as early as Saturday, M-Pesa may not be the droid he’s looking for.





