Safaricom PLC has announced the full restoration of M-Pesa services following a planned system upgrade carried out early Monday morning.
The maintenance exercise, which ran from 12:30 am to 3:30 am on September 22, temporarily disrupted all M-Pesa services, including airtime purchases.
In a statement, the telco confirmed that the mobile money platform is now fully operational. “We look forward to serving you better and providing you with seamless experiences,” Safaricom said.
The company explained that the timing of the upgrade was carefully chosen to minimise disruption to customers, while apologising for any inconvenience caused.
It also expressed gratitude to subscribers for their continued support, reaffirming its commitment to delivering transformative digital and financial solutions.
M-Pesa, which celebrated 18 years since its launch earlier this year, has grown into one of Africa’s most impactful financial services. It now serves more than 70 million customers across over 170 countries.
In Kenya alone, M-Pesa has empowered over 32.1 million people to transact, save and borrow via mobile phones, driving financial inclusion from 26.7 per cent in 2006 to 83.7 per cent in 2021. By 2024, the service had generated over Sh139.9 billion in revenue.
The platform also supports over one million businesses and agents across Kenya, Ethiopia, Tanzania, Mozambique, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Ghana and Egypt.