For the first time, more Safaricom customers now rely on its M-Pesa mobile money service than on its traditional mobile network, signalling a major shift in the company\u2019s business model.<\/p>\n
In the six months to September (H1 FY26), Kenya\u2019s biggest telco reported 37.9 million one-month active M-Pesa users<\/a>, compared with 37.5 million mobile subscribers, per its latest investor presentation. Data service subscribers stood at 31.9 million.<\/p>\n Its mobile money also generated more revenue than core telco services like calls, data, and text. The platform reported KES 88.1 billion ($676.9), driven by higher transaction volumes and a growing merchant network. That figure exceeds the total revenue from mobile data ($309.6 million), mobile voice ($305 million), and messaging ($42.2 million) over the same period.<\/p>\n M-Pesa now accounts for 44% of total service revenues, pointing to the growing importance of the mobile money service to Safaricom.<\/p>\n The telco has been expanding the backbone of its mobile money by introducing merchant solutions, insurance, and wealth management products. In the period, the number of businesses accepting M-Pesa payments rose to 2.4 million, covering SMEs across the country. Its agent network stood at 319,300 active agents; a footprint larger than that of all other financial-sector service providers in Kenya, including banks, combined.<\/p>\n In the six months, the company reported a 52.1% rise in profit to KES 42.8 billion ($331 million), helped by M-PESA business and a reduction in losses from its Ethiopian unit.<\/a> \u00a0Total revenue rose 8.1% to KES 204.7 billion ($1.58 billion), supported by an 11.1% jump in service revenue to KES 199.9 billion ($1.54 billion). Mobile services grew 14% over the period.<\/p>\n Calls to split M-Pesa<\/p>\n Kenya\u2019s National Treasury and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) have been pushing Safaricom to spin off M-Pesa into a standalone subsidiary to give regulators more control.\u00a0<\/p>\n