Kenyans using mobile money services like M-Pesa and Airtel Money have declined by 3.1%, according to a new report by the Communications Authority of Kenya (CAK). This translates to a decrease of 600,000 subscriptions compared to December 2022.
The report blames the drop on a shrinking number of active mobile phone subscriptions (SIM cards). This suggests fewer Kenyans have the necessary tools to access mobile money in the first place.
M-Pesa, offered by Safaricom, and Airtel Money are the dominant mobile money platforms in Kenya, so this decline is likely to impact both providers.
Despite the overall decrease, Safaricom remains the leader in mobile subscriptions with 44.13 million users, followed by Airtel with 19.39 million.
The CAK report doesn’t offer solutions to reverse the trend, but it raises questions about how Kenyans might be changing their mobile money habits.
