The Lower Eastern Times Opening The Third Eye
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Mobile money transactions surged to KSh5.5 trillion in 2023, as reported by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS).
The National Economic Survey for 2024 highlighted a decline of 600,000 mobile money subscribers within the country in the preceding year.
The survey indicated a reduction in the total number of mobile money subscribers from 38.6 million to 38 million in 2023. Despite this decrease, there was a notable 5.5 percent increase in the total cash transferred, reaching the KSh5.5 trillion mark.
This shift underscores alterations in consumer behavior and utilization patterns concerning mobile financial services.
KNBS noted, “Mobile money transferred between subscribers, however, increased by 19.6% to KSh5.5 trillion in 2023.” Kenya’s mobile money landscape, spearheaded by providers like M-Pesa, Airtel Money, and Telkom Cash, experienced a further dip in subscriptions due to new tax proposals by the Treasury.
The government’s objective to generate an additional KSh323 billion in taxes through the 2024 Finance Bill has led to adjustments such as raising the excise duty on mobile airtime and data rates from 15 percent to 20 percent. This could potentially impact the cost dynamics of mobile services and financial transactions.
A report from the Communications Authority (CA) revealed that as of December 30, 2023, mobile money subscriptions plummeted to 38 million, resulting in a penetration rate of 7.51 percent. This decline is linked to the reduction in the number of mobile (SIM) subscriptions.
The CA further disclosed that Kenya’s mobile money penetration rate, which commenced at 78.2 percent in December 2022, experienced a gradual decline throughout the year, stabilizing around 75.1 percent by June 2023.
Prepaid plans continue to dominate the market, accounting for 65,492,294 out of a total of 66,754,709 subscriptions, leaving only a marginal fraction of 1,253,415 for postpaid plans.
Safaricom sustained an impressive number of subscriptions with a total of 44,013,156, of which 42,875,208 were prepaid and 1,137,948 were postpaid.
Airtel, the second-largest network service provider, mirrored a similar trend with 19,282,993 prepaid subscriptions and only 104,467 postpaid subscriptions.
