- M Pesa customers can now make international money transfers through the app
- Cash pick up in any part of the world is possible thanks to the company’s collaboration with Western Union
- M Pesa also makes it possible for its customers to send and receive money from PayPal
Fintech company Safaricom just launched M Pesa Global, a development that will make it possible for M Pesa users to transfer money internationally as well as receive funds from relatives and friends abroad.
According to fintech observers in the region, the launch of M Pesa Global will reduce overseas transfer rates as well as making it more convenient for customers to access their funds. The service is set to revolutionise app-based transfers beyond Kenya’s border.
In an interview with Safaricom, the company’s executives said that the service will allow customers anywhere in the world to send funds to anyone in Kenya with an M Pesa mobile wallet. This is the first of its kind in Africa, according to observers as all M Pesa customers can also send money abroad. Recipients can opt to have the funds sent to their bank accounts or they can be picked up at any Western Union agent location. Western Union currently has over 500,000 locations around the world.
Safaricom’s Chief Financial Services Officer Sitoyo Lopokoiyit said: "This new service brings the convenience, safety and speed of M-Pesa to the rest of the world and will enable Kenyans to send and receive money across the world from the comfort of their mobile phones." He added that the newly launched service “seeks to connect Kenyans to opportunities by making it easy and seamless for them to transact with the world and for the world to transact with Kenyans".
Reports say that transferring money to bank accounts in the United Kingdom, Germany, and the United Arab Emirates will be available immediately while the same service to other countries will be in operation in the next few weeks. M Pesa is ahead of its competitors, experts say as it already has the capability to send and receive money from PayPal accounts.
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