Safaricom PLC has announced the departure of its M-PESA Managing Director, Sitoyo Lopokoiyi, after a 15-year tenure with the company.
In a statement dated Tuesday, February 10, 2026, the telecommunications giant said Lopokoiyi will leave his role on March 31, 2026, to take up a new position outside Vodacom, Safaricom’s parent company.
“I would like to announce that Sitoyo Lopokoiyi, Managing Director, M-PESA Africa, will be leaving the company to take up a new role outside the Vodacom family. His last working day will be 31st March 2026,” Safaricom said.
Safaricom Announces Exit of Sitoyo Lopokoiyi as Managing Director of M-PESA Africa
Sitoyo has served as Managing Director of M-PESA Africa since April 2021.
During this period, he is credited with leading the expansion of M-PESA into a continental platform, growing its presence to eight African countries and serving over 60 million customers and more than 5 million businesses.
Under his leadership, Safaricom stated that M-PESA evolved from a peer-to-peer money transfer service into a fully integrated fintech ecosystem, encompassing payments, savings, credit, merchant solutions, and interoperable global payments.
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Previous Roles Held by the Outgoing MD
Sitoyo joined Safaricom in July 2011 as Head of M-PESA Strategy and Business Development. Over the last 15 years, he has held several senior leadership roles within the Safaricom and Vodacom ecosystems, including Director of M-Commerce at Vodacom Tanzania and Chief Financial Services Officer at Safaricom PLC.
As a member of Safaricom’s Executive Committee (EXCO), he provided strong leadership and contributed to many of the company’s defining milestones.
Across these roles, Safaricom said he has been instrumental in delivering landmark innovations that have reshaped financial services, driven financial inclusion at scale, and positioned M-PESA as a world-leading mobile financial platform.
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Before joining Safaricom, Sitoyo worked across multiple sectors, gaining experience in commercial and innovation roles.
While serving as Business Advisor and Merchandising Manager at Caltex (then under Chevron Kenya Limited), he collaborated with Safaricom during M-PESA’s early stages, helping shape the agent aggregator model now widely used in the mobile money industry.
During his time at Safaricom, Sitoyo also helped develop and strengthen global partnerships, working with companies such as Visa, Ant Financial, PayPal, Microsoft, and Huawei, which enhanced M-PESA’s position as a leading mobile financial platform.
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Safaricom’s outgoing MPESA Managing Director Sitoyo Lopokoiyi. PHOTO/Sitoyo
