Airtel Money Kenya lifted its market share to 10.3% in
September, its highest level on record and the first time the
service reached double digits, according to new Competition
Authority of Kenya (CAK) data. The shift reflects incremental gains
Airtel Money has made in transaction volumes, active wallets and
merchant acceptance during 2024–25.
Airtel Money is operated by Airtel Kenya, a subsidiary of Airtel
Africa Plc (LSE:AAF), which reported 38.0mn across-platform mobile
money customers across its footprint in its most recent financial
disclosures. In Kenya, Airtel has expanded its agent network and
deepened retail acceptance, building on earlier reductions in
transaction fees and cross-network charges.
M-PESA, operated by Safaricom Plc (NSE:SCOM), remains dominant
but saw its share fall to 89.7% in September — the first drop below
90% since launch in 2007. Industry data shows M-PESA handles the
majority of Kenya’s mobile money transactions, with more than 30mn
active customers and daily volumes exceeding KES1.0bn in
person-to-person value, according to Central Bank of Kenya
trends.
CAK attributed Airtel Money’s gains to tariff revisions,
targeted onboarding of merchants in retail and transport corridors,
and rising interoperability usage. Regulators noted increased
traffic over the mobile money interoperability rail introduced in
stages from 2018 onward, which has steadily reduced switching costs
for users.
Safaricom has maintained that M-PESA’s scale, agent network of
over 200,000 outlets and diversified product suite — including
savings, micro-credit and enterprise payments — provide structural
advantages. Mobile-money revenues have historically contributed
more than one-third of group service revenue in its annual
reports.
Kenya’s digital-payments market remains one of the most mature
in Africa, with over 70% of adult Kenyans using mobile money and
monthly sector transaction values regularly exceeding KES600bn,
according to CBK data. Growth has been supported by regulatory
reforms on tariffs, agent-banking rules and consumer
protection.
Further changes in market share will likely depend on pricing
reforms under CAK review, expansion of agent networks in peri-urban
and rural zones, and the rollout of new credit and merchant-payment
products. Ongoing sector reforms, including
digital-financial-services competition guidelines, may determine
how quickly alternative providers can scale.
© 2025 bne IntelliNews, source Magazine
