Safaricom, Kenya's largest telecommunications operator, is reducing M-PESA transaction costs, enlarging mobile data allocations, and upgrading fibre internet speeds as part of a strategy to drive growth by deepening engagement among existing customers rather than pursuing new subscriber acquisitions.

The changes were announced on Friday under the banner of "Pata More" — a new customer value proposition whose Swahili name translates to "get more." The initiative touches nearly every major consumer segment at Safaricom, including M-PESA, mobile data, fibre broadband, smartphones, and customer support.

Safaricom already serves the vast majority of Kenya's mobile subscribers. According to data from the Communications Authority of Kenya, M-PESA held 89.1% of the country's mobile money market in March 2026, well ahead of Airtel Money's 10.9% share. M-PESA, which launched in 2007, has grown into one of the world's most widely used mobile money platforms and a cornerstone of Kenya's financial system, particularly for unbanked and underbanked populations.

With limited room for customer base expansion, the company's future growth hinges on encouraging existing users to spend more time and money within the M-PESA ecosystem. Pata More embodies that strategic pivot, delivering larger data bundles, reduced merchant payment fees, and bundled services at a time when consumers are increasingly cost-conscious and competitors are pressing harder on pricing. The strategy mirrors a broader trend across African telecommunications, where operators facing market saturation are increasingly repositioning themselves as integrated digital services and fintech providers.

Safaricom told TechCabal on Saturday that Pata More is intended as a durable customer value proposition rather than a seasonal promotion.

"Pata More responds to the evolving customer needs. Customers are looking for more value, convenience, and support from the services they use every day," the company stated. "Safaricom has been enhancing its offers across connectivity, M-PESA, devices, business solutions and care, and Pata More brings these improvements together under one simple promise: more value from Safaricom."

Reshaping Everyday Payments

The most consequential changes sit within M-PESA, where Safaricom is cutting the cost of sending and accepting small-value payments.

The company has already doubled the fee-free threshold for Pochi la Biashara, its payment service designed for informal traders and sole proprietors who wish to accept digital payments without formal business registration. Customers can now send up to KES 200 ($1.55) without charge, up from KES 100 ($0.77). Fees on larger Pochi la Biashara transactions will be capped at KES 50 ($0.39) for a 90-day period.

Beginning August 7, Safaricom will also raise the fee-free threshold on Lipa na M-PESA Buy Goods — the merchant payment service used by registered businesses — from KES 200 ($1.55) to KES 500 ($3.87). Additionally, businesses transferring funds from their Buy Goods tills to M-PESA wallets or PayBill accounts, which are used to collect customer payments such as bills and invoices, will pay approximately half the previous transfer charges.

These adjustments target the millions of low-value transactions processed across Kenya each day, where even modest fees can tip the scale between digital payments and cash. Safaricom contends that reducing costs will incentivize more merchants to accept M-PESA while giving customers additional reasons to pay digitally.

"The objective is to make everyday digital payments more affordable and convenient for customers and small businesses," Safaricom told TechCabal.

The company reported that M-PESA Kadogo — its tariff that eliminates fees on selected low-value transactions — processed 17.1 billion transactions during the financial year ended March 2026, representing 58% of all activity on the platform.

This means more than half of all M-PESA transactions already originate from small-value payments, indicating that the platform's next growth phase depends less on large transfers and more on increasing the volume of everyday purchases flowing through its network.

"By expanding free Pochi transactions to KES 200 ($1.55), capping Pochi transaction fees at KES 50 ($0.39) for 90 days and raising the Lipa na M-PESA Buy Goods Kadogo threshold from KES 200 ($1.55) to KES 500 ($3.87), we are empowering small businesses by ensuring they keep more of what they earn while giving customers more flexibility to pay digitally," the company said.

The Rationale Behind Lower Fees

Reducing transaction fees may appear counterintuitive for a business that generated KES 182 billion ($1.41 billion) in M-PESA revenue during the year ended March 2026 — representing 45% of Safaricom Kenya's service revenue. However, the company is wagering that cheaper payments will spur customers and merchants to transact more frequently, enabling higher volumes to compensate for lower per-transaction fees.

"Our focus is on unlocking market value for everyone," Safaricom said. "When services become more affordable, useful and easier to access, customers and businesses are more likely to use them consistently. Lower transaction costs support wider digital acceptance, especially for small payments."

The approach also reflects M-PESA's deepening integration within Safaricom's broader business. Rather than functioning as a standalone payments platform, it has evolved into a gateway to a wider ecosystem encompassing airtime purchases, data bundles, bill payments, merchant services, and credit products. Each additional M-PESA transaction creates further opportunities for customers to engage with other Safaricom services.

Safaricom stated that during the 90-day observation window it will monitor Pochi la Biashara adoption, Pochi Kadogo usage, merchant activity, transaction values, customer behavior, and feedback from small businesses before determining whether to extend or adjust the program.

"Success will be measured by whether the changes are delivering real value to both customers and merchants," the company said.

Expanded Data Offerings

The same philosophy extends to Safaricom's connectivity business, where the company is increasing value without altering headline prices. Customers purchasing the KES 20 ($0.15) daily bundle will now receive 250MB, up from 150MB. The KES 99 ($0.77) bundle increases from 1GB to 1.5GB, while the KES 1,000 ($7.75) monthly bundle now includes 21.5GB — more than double the previous 10GB allocation.

The move narrows the competitive gap with Airtel Kenya, which over the past two years has competed aggressively through larger data bundles, promotional offers, and lower effective data prices. Safaricom has refrained from outright price cuts, opting instead to increase the data volume customers receive at existing price points.

The strategy is evident across Safaricom's other consumer businesses as well. Fibre customers now receive internet speeds up to 2.5 times faster than their previous plans, selected smartphones are being sold with bundled connectivity and device insurance, and commercial drivers can access packages combining mobile connectivity with ride-hailing applications and Google Maps.

Consolidating Into a Single App

My OneApp, Safaricom's super app, has received comparatively less attention than the tariff changes but serves as the connective tissue for much of the Pata More announcement. The application enables customers to manage M-PESA, connectivity, fibre services, and customer support through a single interface.

"My OneApp is an important part of improving customer experience by bringing more of the Safaricom experience into one place," Safaricom told TechCabal. "The aim is to make everyday interactions simpler and more convenient, while customers continue to access Safaricom services through the channels they already know."

In April, Safaricom told TechCabal it plans to decommission the standalone M-PESA and mySafaricom apps six months after My OneApp's launch, consolidating all consumer services into a single application.

A Long-Term Growth Bet

Safaricom characterizes Pata More as a sustained customer proposition rather than a limited-time campaign.

"While some offers may run for defined periods, the overall aim is to give customers and businesses more value, convenience and support from every interaction with Safaricom," the company told TechCabal.

The initiative illustrates how Safaricom is navigating growth in a market where it already dominates both mobile and mobile money services. With a shrinking pool of new customers to capture, the company is focused on intensifying usage across the services its subscribers already rely on — from M-PESA and mobile data to fibre broadband and connected devices. Whether Airtel responds with further price reductions or bundle increases, and whether Safaricom's volume-driven approach to fee reductions sustains M-PESA revenue growth, will be closely watched as the 90-day observation period progresses.