M-Pesa Revolution

About M-Pesa Revolution

M Pesa, launched by Safaricom in Kenya in 2007, was the worlds first successful mobile money service. Developed with funding from the UK Department for International Development, M Pesa allowed Kenyans to send money using basic mobile phones without bank accounts. Within 5 years, over 17 million Kenyans used M Pesa, more than the total bank accounts in the country. M Pesa transformed Kenyan commerce, allowed remote payments, and reduced crime by reducing cash. M Pesa expanded to Tanzania, Egypt, Ghana, and India with varying success. The success of M Pesa inspired similar systems worldwide and demonstrated that mobile phones could provide financial services to the unbanked. M Pesa processes over 20 billion in transactions annually.