After having a consultative meeting with the Central Bank of Kenya Governor Dr. Patrick Njoroge following the current health pandemic occasioned by the COVID-19, Safaricom has waived transaction fees for sending money to loved ones via Mpesa. The meeting was hosted by the counties banking sector regulator and attended by Safaricom alongside other industry players to discuss the evolving situation around the COVID-19 (Corona Virus) pandemic.
The meeting follows the directive issued by Kenya’s President H.E Uhuru Kenyatta to explore ways of deepening mobile money usage to reduce the risk of spreading the virus through the physical handling of cash. The President also directed that we consider reducing the cost of using mobile money during this period.
In the meeting, it was agreed that all person-to-person transactions below Ksh1,000 shall be free. This means that from tomorrow morning, M-PESA users will be able to send any amount below Ksh1,000 for free over the next 90 (ninety) days.
To support this, and in particular small and micro business enterprises (SMEs), CBK has also approved the increase of daily M-PESA transaction limits from the current Ksh70,000 to Ksh150,000. Kenyans will also be able to transact up to Ksh300,000 up from the current limit of Ksh140,000, and hold up to Ksh300,000 in their M-PESA wallets.
Safaricom also committed to work hand in hand with the Government by providing a Call Center and integrating a toll-free line 719 which has been set up by the National Emergency Response Committee on Coronavirus to support Kenyans in understanding how to prevent and manage suspected cases.