It could easily pass in many quarters as correct to say M-Pesa is the best thing that has happened since sliced bread. Well, it could be true, but the real big thing was the penetration of the mobile phone in Kenya.
The mobile phone growth in the country forced people in need to incline their source of help on a resource that was available. The mobile phone brought about many changes in the way services are delivered in many places. In general, Kenya’s middle class and the lower class has greatly been revolutionized by the mobile phone.
Mobile money however is one of the greatest products that came on the mobile phone platform for Kenyans and other places in the world. Many small scale businessmen were in need of banking services that were difficult with the conventional system of banking. Funds transfer was a hectic thing and the available modes of transfer were not real time and could not be relied upon in case of emergencies or for traders who needed quick supplies.
If Safaricom’s results are anything to go by, the uptake of mobile money shows how people are continuously relying on Mobile money in their daily lives. The company, in its financial results for 2011/12 made a net profit of Ksh. Sh12.6 billion which was a 4% drop from what the company realized in 2011. Its money service M-Pesa however saw its revenues grow 43% to KES 16.9 billion supported by a 6% growth in registered users to 14.9 million. M-PESA’s revenue comes mainly in the form of the charges they levy on senders and receivers of cash.