Wallets · On request
M-Pesa
M-Pesa is the mobile money service launched by Safaricom in Kenya in 2007 and run by Vodacom in Tanzania: money sits on an account tied to the phone number, and an online payment is a prompt on the phone that the payer confirms with the M-Pesa PIN. Confirmation is instant, there are no chargebacks, payouts go to a phone number, and about 80 % of Kenya's online payments run through it (Central Bank of Kenya, 2025).
Key facts
- Currencies
- KES, TZS
- Operations
- Pay-in · Payout
- Settlement
- instant
- Chargebacks
- not possible
- share of e-commerce payments · Kenya
- 80 % (Central Bank of Kenya, 2025)
How a payment goes through
- 1The checkout opens the wallet app or shows its button
- 2The payer confirms in the app with a PIN or biometrics
- 3The wallet confirms the payment to the provider within seconds
- 4Webhook to the merchant; a refund goes back the same way
How a payment goes through
- The checkout asks for the payer’s M-Pesa phone number and sends the STK push, or shows the Paybill number and the reference.
- The payer confirms the amount on the phone with the M-Pesa PIN.
- M-Pesa debits the account; the provider confirms instantly.
- Tranzify writes the result and calls the merchant’s webhook.
M-Pesa against cards in Kenya
| M-Pesa | Cards | |
|---|---|---|
| Operator | Safaricom in Kenya since 2007, Vodacom in Tanzania since 2008 | Visa, Mastercard |
| Payer needs | a SIM with an M-Pesa account | a card |
| Share of online payments in Kenya | about 80 % (Central Bank of Kenya, 2025) | — |
| Confirmation | instant, with the PIN on the phone | seconds, 3-D Secure |
| Settlement | instant | T+1 |
| Chargebacks | none | scheme rules |
| Payouts | yes, to a phone number (B2C) | push to card, limited |
Payouts and refunds
Payouts go to the recipient’s phone number through Flutterwave or Paystack and arrive at once. Refunds and recurring charges are not part of the method, so money owed back goes out as a payout.
Who uses it
E-commerce, delivery and digital goods, where most Kenyan payers pay from the phone; education for school and course fees; iGaming for deposits and instant withdrawals to the phone.
How to connect
- 1Onboard with Tranzify and get your network, keys and back office.
- 2Enter your account with the provider in the terminal settings — Tranzify already speaks its API.
- 3Add routing rules: countries, currencies, amounts, BIN ranges, priorities and weights.
- 4Go live. Every payment, callback and retry is in the journal for five years.
Providers offering this method
Industries
Terms
Frequently asked questions
What is an STK push?+
Are refunds possible?+
Who is the licensed party in Kenya and Tanzania?+
Related methods
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