Concerns over the economic impact of recent M-Pesa outages have prompted the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to strengthen its collaboration with the mobile money platform.

CBK Governor Kamau Thugge emphasized the importance of addressing these issues.

"I think on the issue of M-Pesa we are in very close touch with Safaricom because of course we recognise the risk to the economy of these outages and this is an area of concern and it is an area we are in very close talks with M-Pesa to see how they can be alleviated," Thugge stated,

M-Pesa, the ubiquitous mobile money platform in Kenya, has experienced intermittent outages in recent months, causing inconvenience and disruption for millions of users.

These disruptions not only affect individual transactions, but also have the potential to impact businesses and the overall flow of the economy.

Read More

  1. Safaricom's Ethiopia venture receives boost as telecom regulator slashes rates
  2. Safaricom injects Sh20 million to power up the Connected Africa Summit 2024
  3. Kenya cracks down on greenwashing with new draft green finance rules

However, recent service interruptions have raised concerns about potential economic disruptions.

Governor Thugge did not elaborate on the specific nature of the "close talks" with Safaricom, 

By working together, the CBK and Safaricom can ensure that M-Pesa continues to serve Kenyans reliably and contribute to the stability and growth of the national economy.

This collaborative approach underscores the shared responsibility of financial regulators and service providers in safeguarding the integrity and resilience of critical financial systems in the digital age.