Safaricom’s My OneApp handles Sh100bn daily in transactions

Safaricom's integrated digital platform, MyOneApp, has crossed a critical milestone: processing approximately Sh100 billion (roughly USD 775 million) in daily transaction volume. Chief Executive Peter Ndegwa disclosed the figure during recent investor communications, highlighting that the platform now orchestrates roughly 500 million transactions per day—a scale that positions Kenya's telecom giant as one of Africa's largest financial infrastructure operators by throughput.

This achievement underscores a profound shift in how African mobile money markets are consolidating. M-Pesa, the engine driving MyOneApp's transaction flow, remains the backbone of Kenya's informal and formal economy. But the platform's ability to aggregate M-Pesa alongside insurance products, savings, loans, and utility payments into a single interface signals Safaricom's strategic pivot from telecommunications toward becoming a diversified financial services provider.

## What does Sh100bn daily volume mean for Kenya's economy?

At an annualized run rate, MyOneApp is processing roughly Sh36.5 trillion in annual transactions—equivalent to approximately 60% of Kenya's official GDP. This concentration of financial flow through a single private platform creates both efficiency gains and systemic risks. For investors, it demonstrates the depth of digital financial adoption in Kenya and validates the "super-app" thesis that has driven valuations across Southeast Asian fintech firms. However, it also reveals Kenya's structural reliance on a single dominant player, raising questions about competitive dynamics and regulatory resilience.

The 500 million daily transactions metric is particularly revealing. At that velocity, MyOneApp's infrastructure must support transaction finality in milliseconds while maintaining fraud detection and Know-Your-Customer compliance. This technical achievement—often overlooked in media coverage—represents years of engineering investment and positions Safaricom's infrastructure as a potential asset class for enterprise clients seeking settlement reliability.

## How does this compare to regional peers?

Compared to South Africa's Capitec or Nigeria's Flutterwave, Safaricom's domestic volume concentration is notable but unsurprising given Kenya's advanced mobile money adoption and the absence of significant competing platforms. MTN's MoMo ecosystem in other African markets operates at lower per-capita volumes, partly due to fragmented regulatory environments and weaker internet infrastructure outside Kenya. This suggests Kenya remains the continent's fintech laboratory—a testing ground where digital financial density approximates developed-market conditions.

The M-Pesa dependency, however, carries strategic implications. While MyOneApp's diversified product layer (insurance, credit, savings) generates higher-margin revenue than pure money transfer, the platform's gravitational pull remains payment settlement. This concentration exposes Safaricom to regulatory intervention, competitive pressure from banking APIs, and the ever-present threat of incumbent banks building parallel infrastructure.

## What are the investor implications?

For equity investors, the Sh100bn daily volume validates Safaricom's thesis that telecommunications infrastructure can serve as a moat for financial services. The metric supports premium valuation multiples relative to pure-play telcos. For debt investors, it signals strong recurring revenue visibility and customer lock-in. Conversely, regulators and policymakers should view this concentration as a stress-test indicator: Kenya's financial system is now critically dependent on Safaricom's operational continuity.