Revealed: M-PESA Handles Ksh100 Billion Daily With 10,000 Transactions Per Second

M-PESA, Safaricom’s flagship mobile money platform, is now processing approximately Ksh 100 billion every single day.

The platform is also handling more than 500 million transactions daily, powered by an upgraded system capable of processing up to 10,000 transactions per second.

Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa disclosed during the Connected Africa Summit held in Nairobi, where he highlighted the platform’s rapid scaling and expanding continental footprint.

“M-PESA processes about Sh100 billion daily (approximately $800 million) through over 500 million transactions, supported by a new platform capable of handling 10,000 transactions per second,” Ndegwa said.

He further revealed that M-PESA now operates across seven markets, marking a significant shift from a Kenya-centric mobile money service to a regional fintech infrastructure player.

According to him, the next phase of growth will depend on reducing operational friction and deepening partnerships with governments to accelerate digital public service delivery.

M-PESA’s Position as Financial Infrastructure

The newly increased volume makes M-PESA one of the most transactionally active real-time payment systems in the world.

An increase in the number of transactions to 10,000 per second demonstrates Safaricom’s efforts towards the creation of new financial infrastructure in the region.

According to the statistics, the volume increased from previously 4,500-6,000 transactions per second to 10,000 transactions per second after the introduction of the upgrade.

This upgrade represents a part of the more comprehensive Fintech 2.0 strategy introduced by Safaricom.

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Fintech 2.0: The Components of the New System

The Fintech 2.0 system can be regarded as one of the most disruptive innovations to M-PESA from Safaricom in well over ten years.

This system relies on state-of-the-art cloud computing systems and modularity architecture using artificial intelligence technology.

The system is built to offer uninterrupted services through regular upgrades without shutting down completely.

According to Safaricom, Fintech 2.0 is much more than just a technical upgrade to M-PESA; it’s about rebranding M-PESA as a continental digital infrastructure backbone for financial transactions, loans, insurances, and even government services.

Seven Markets Expansion and Regional Strategy

As mentioned by Ndegwa, M-PESA is currently present in seven markets, which reflects its aspirations to become a pan-African financial system.

Such a market expansion strategy is in accordance with the company’s wider strategy of ensuring interoperability and enabling digital transactions without crossing any borders.

In addition, the CEO highlighted the need to eliminate any transaction frictions while working with governments.

The latter implies the integration of M-PESA into government institutions, such as tax collection and distribution of social benefits linked to digital identification.

Also Read: Safaricom Announces Fully Funded Scholarships for Select Students as Schools Reopen

Background: Safaricom’s Digital Fintech Ecosystem Evolution

Apart from M-PESA transactions increasing over the years, Safaricom has made investments in other areas aimed at consolidating its dominant position in fintech.

For instance, there has been the emergence of Fintech 2.0, which represents the whole infrastructure change geared at improving scalability and developer integration.

Among the new features are improved APIs, AI-based fraud detection, and cloud-based architecture aimed at supporting increased transaction rates and additional services.

There have also been efforts geared toward creating a digital ecosystem in which all of Safaricom’s services are available under one roof.

In this respect, the company created the platform called My OneApp, which brings together services that were previously offered under multiple platforms like M-PESA and MySafaricom, with the ultimate aim of bringing millions of customers on one single platform and allowing for third-party mini-applications.

On the other hand, there have been some adjustments in regard to how transaction data is presented in Safaricom’s mobile money ecosystem.

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