Kenya’s mobile money use hit a new high of Sh1.82 trillion in the first quarter of 2021 as businesses fully recover from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the latest data released by the Central Bank of Kenya.
The usage is an increase from Sh1.6trillion transacted during a similar period in 2021. Citizens transacted Sh687.3billion on the platforms in March, the highest amount ever in a month, the regulator noted.
Most businesses in the country, including public transport vehicles, have increasingly adopted cashless transactions and e-commerce, giving a huge boost to the service with most transactions being conducted through mobile
phones.
According to CBK during the quarter, the number of registered mobile money users stood at 69 million as the number of agents employed to offer the service rose to 302,837, up from 299,860 in December 2021.
Kenyans use mobile money to transact for banking and government services, access loans, pay bills and school fees, and raise funds, among others.
According to a recent survey by the Central bank, a majority of Kenyan businesses have also fast-recovered from the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic due to the increased adoption of digital services.
According to a recent report, Africa now accounts for 70 percent of the world’s Sh116 trillion mobile money value. The value of Africa’s mobile money transactions edged up 39 percent to Sh81.7 trillion in 2021 from Sh57.7 billion in 2020, highlighting the future of African banking is mobile.
GSMA’s figures show the volume of digital transactions jumped 23 percent to 36.7 billion in 2021 from 27.5 billion in 2020.
In the review period, registered mobile wallets in Africa topped 621 million, a 17 percent increase from 562 million captured in 2020. Currently, there are over 184 million active mobile money wallets on the continent compared to 161 million accounts just over a year
before.
The African mobile money ecosystem is also rapidly diversifying as is the rest of the world, from business-to-consumer (B2C) to Business-to-business (B2B.)
According to GSMA, the total global transaction value in 2021 was Sh116 trillion, up 31 percent from 2020. While the trillion-dollar mark was a long-awaited goal of the industry, the GSMA had initially predicted it would not be achieved until 2023. (
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