Uber's battle for Kenya

From USA Today –

“One night last month I ordered an Uber ride. It was late. On my iPhone I watched the little car icon zoom right past my street, U-turn and park a quarter-mile down the road. Perhaps the driver was lost? I waited and waited and waited for him to call, and eventually gave up after 10 minutes and called him myself. "Zero points for initiative," my housemate muttered.

This is Uber. In Nairobi.”

Read more>>

Google retires Kenyan cashless transit service

From Finextra –

“Google's tactical retreat from the payments market continues apace with the closure of Bebapay, a pre-paid card for contactless transit fares in Kenya that was launched in 2013 with the support of Equity Bank.

In a notice to its 100,000 cardholders in Nairobi, the search giant said it will discontinue the service in March.”

Read more>>

Will Africa’s Mobile Money Revolution Take Hold?

From AFK Insider -

“When mobile network operator (MNO) Safaricom launched its M-Pesa mobile payments system in Kenya seven years ago, few business models were as ripe to explode. With extremely high mobile penetration rates, a high proportion of unbanked households, a regulatory system that allowed telecoms companies rather than banks to lead the way, and a migrant population suffering from expensive domestic remittances, it is little wonder that more than two-thirds of Kenyan adults use the service today.

In fact, M-Pesa has become the largest driver behind financial inclusion in Kenya. Today, 66.7% of the country’s residents have access to formal financial services, compared to just 41.3% in 2009. In addition, 43% of Kenya’s GDP passes through M-Pesa.

But the service, which has also been quite successful in Tanzania, is not just the continental leader in mobile payments. It can additionally boast of operations in non-African countries where its parent company, Vodafone, operates, including Afghanistan, India, and even EU-member Romania.”

Read more>> 

What Bitcoin Can Learn From Mobile Money's Journey

From Coin Desk -

“Many of the greatest challenges faced by bitcoin today – adoption, scale and regulation – mirror those of its predecessor: mobile money.

When launched in 2007, mobile money was just as foreign and raised as much alarm as bitcoin. Though it has since spread to 60 million active users, mobile money was not an overnight success. However, we now have seven years of data about its achievements and failures that we can learn from and use to shape the choices made by those in the bitcoin sphere.

Research on mobile money focuses on emerging markets, where use is concentrated and most people don’t have formal bank accounts. Digital finance has proliferated in these regions because it’s easier to roll out mobile networks than shore up information and communications technology (ICT) infrastructure.


Kenya has become the paragon of mobile money. Today, more than two-thirds of Kenyans use M-Pesa.

Why did this work and what are the lingering issues and opportunities for bitcoin?’

Read more>> 

Why M-Pesa’s Kenya business model had to be altered for South Africa

From How We Made It In Africa

“It is frequently noted that business models that work in the US or European countries, might not work in Africa and should be adapted to the continent’s specific needs. The same can be said for adapting business models from one African country to another, as the ‘copy-and-paste’ method does not address different market dynamics. And there is no better example of this than the case of M-Pesa.”

read more>>

Financial Regulators Should Listen to Bill Gates on Mobile Money

From American Banker

“People around the world are holding an instrument for economic empowerment in the palm of their hands-but some of those who could benefit most from mobile money are facing a lock screen.

Mobile payments have emerged as a key tool in the fight against global poverty. People in poor and rural areas of countries like Kenya and India are already using cell phones to send and receive funds and pay bills. Microsoft founder Bill Gates highlighted a broad range of possibilities at the Sibos banking conference in Boston early this month, describing how mobile payment applications can help people in developing countries receive vital aid, set aside money to buy fertilizer for next year's crops, save for tuition fees and build credit scores that give them to access to affordable loans.”

read more>>