Safaricom's M-pesa in UK

Kenyans can now receive money from friends and family in the United Kingdom directly on their M-pesa accounts.

This makes Safaricom the first company to offer a mobile based international money transfer service, whereby registered M-pesa customers can receive remittances directly onto their mobile phones.

The launch of the international component of M-pesa follows a successful pilot project with selected outlets in the UK.

Three Agents have been involved in conducting the project for over three months, namely; Western Union, Provident Capital Transfers and KenTv.

A total of 19 outlets were carefully selected to cover areas with relatively high number of Kenyan residential areas including towns like Reading, London, Luton, Wembley & Glasgow.

They comprise a variety of shops including forex agents, news agents and grocery shops that are commonly visited by Kenyans and whom are registered with HM Revenue & Customs in the UK as Money Services Businesses.

To send money using M-PESA, the sender in UK will be required to identify themselves and furnish the agent with the recipient’s name, Kenyan mobile number and the amount being sent in Sterling Pounds.

Exchange rate conversion to Kenya Shillings is done at the prevailing rate and the agent will proceed to send the Kenya Shillings direct to the recipients M-pesa account.

There is no registration fee to either party for using M-PESA’s international service.

The sender will pay a competitive transaction fee ranging from £4 to £6.90, depending on the amount sent and the outlet at which they are transacting.

For example, you can send up to £150 for as little as £4; this transaction fee is shared between Safaricom and the Agent.

Following authorisation by the Central Bank of Kenya, Safaricom shall be increasing the locations in the UK from which money can be sent to M-pesa customers as well as launching services across other popular remittance corridors.

Currently, the maximum amount that can be sent internationally per transaction through M-pesa is £250 (approx Sh30,000) while the total allowable per month from a single sender in the UK is £1,000.

Normal transaction limits and charges apply to the M-pesa account in Kenya, including a maximum balance of Sh50,000.

Safaricom CEO Michael Joseph said: “We wish to invite Kenyans living in the UK to take advantage of this service, which presents a real innovation on our M-pesa menu. Through strategic partnerships with Western Union, Provident Capital and KenTV we are giving them an opportunity to convert across two currencies into M-pesa and send money affordably without any hidden costs – directly to the mobile phone of the recipient.”