CC image coutersy of rogiro on Flickr
Leading Kenya operator Safaricom has upgraded the M-Pesa Application Programme Interface (API), making it possible for customers to make mobile banking transactions instantaneously.
The API, which previously allowed for an average transaction time of two hours, has been adjusted to allow them to take place in less than 30 seconds.
Safaricom said it is projected the move will work towards a cash-lite society through a more effective mobile-banking proposition, while also helping in streamlining operations for businesses that disburse staff salaries or receive payments through M-Pesa and require to move cash to bank accounts on a regular basis.
“Innovation is a continuous process at Safaricom and that is why we have been seeking ways to deliver services to customers with speed and efficiency. Twelve leading banks and 26 SACCOs have already migrated to the new platform and migration is on-going for 30 other institutions,” said Safaricom chief executive officer (CEO) Bob Collymore.
Safaricom’s general manager for financial services Betty Mwangi-Thuo said: “The growth of mobile banking is being fuelled by our customers’ desire for more convenience and greater efficiency. The advent of M-Pesa provided Kenyans with an unprecedented degree of financial liberation and the pressure is therefore on us to stay ahead of the market by continuously coming up with innovations that respond to or predict market needs.”
