The authorization to introduce Safaricom’s mobile money service, M-Pesa, in Ethiopia has been given.
The Safaricom M-Pesa Mobile Financial Service received a license from the National Bank of Ethiopia (NBE), enabling Safaricom to extend its services outside of Kenya, where it was first introduced in 2007. In a couple of weeks, the debut is anticipated.
Ethiopia’s National Bank said in a statement that the country’s continued goal of supporting financial innovation and inclusiveness in the Ethiopian market is reflected in the granting of the mobile money license.
“With NBE support, the menu of digital finance offerings, including mobile banking, mobile wallets, internet banking, and card banking, has expanded rapidly in recent years, showing the strong underlying public demand for the use of such services,” stated NBE in a statement.
“We welcome this shift to the use of digital financial services to improve the country’s quickly expanding financial system’s efficiency, safety, and transparency.”
In 22 cities and areas, Safaricom Ethiopia has already made a name for itself in the nation by providing voice, message, and data services. Three million people have joined the company’s 1,272 network sites in just seven months, proving there is a high demand for telecom services in Ethiopia.
The NBE received $150 million (Sh20.5 billion) in fees from Safaricom Ethiopia as part of the license arrangement, making it the first foreign-owned company in the nation to be granted such a permission.
“As of this morning, Safaricom Ethiopia has officially been granted the license to operate mobile money,” stated Safaricom Chief Executive Peter Ndegwa in response to the development. M-Pesa will become live in the upcoming weeks, something we are excited about.