Safaricom Bets on AI and Financial Services to Drive Next Phase of Growth, Ndegwa Says
Safaricom is expanding beyond traditional telecommunications into financial services, artificial intelligence and integrated digital platforms as it seeks to strengthen financial inclusion and position itself as a leading technology company in Africa.
Safaricom Chief Executive Officer Peter Ndegwa outlined the strategy in an interview with CNN journalist Victoria Rubadiri on Profit Point, reflecting on the company’s transformation during his six years at the helm and its expansion into Ethiopia, the evolution of M-PESA and continued investment in connectivity infrastructure.
Ndegwa said Safaricom’s ambition is to become “Africa’s leading purpose-led technology company”, with technology and innovation playing a central role in addressing customer needs and expanding access to digital services.
A key pillar of the strategy is the transformation of M-PESA from a mobile money transfer service into a broader financial services platform offering payments, savings, investments and insurance.
“We want to broaden and democratise access so you can either pay, you can save, you can invest, you can insure using M-PESA,” Ndegwa said.
The expansion is intended to make financial services more accessible to individuals and businesses, building on M-PESA’s established role in everyday transactions. Safaricom is also targeting businesses through services that allow merchants to receive payments, pay suppliers and compensate employees, positioning the platform as a tool for managing business operations.
The strategy reflects the company’s broader focus on financial inclusion, particularly in addressing gaps in access to financial products and services. By extending M-PESA’s capabilities, Safaricom aims to serve customers beyond money transfers and deepen its role in the wider financial ecosystem.
Artificial intelligence is also becoming increasingly important to the company’s operations, particularly in fraud detection and the protection of digital transactions.
Safaricom processes approximately 150 million transactions daily, a scale that presents significant demands for monitoring activity and identifying suspicious transactions in real time.
“We can’t manually be able to prevent fraud if we didn’t have AI and we have a data layer,” Ndegwa said, highlighting the importance of combining artificial intelligence with data analytics to strengthen transaction security.
As digital financial services grow, the use of automated systems to detect and prevent fraud is becoming a critical component of maintaining customer confidence. Safaricom’s approach relies on technology to help identify potentially fraudulent activity across its extensive transaction network.
The expansion of M-PESA’s financial services offering is also bringing Safaricom into closer competition with banks and fintech companies. However, Ndegwa said the relationships between these players are not defined solely by competition, with financial institutions also serving as partners in delivering services to customers.
“Financial institutions like banks and insurance companies are competitors, but they’re also partners,” he said.
Beyond financial services, Safaricom continues to invest in network infrastructure to support rising demand for connectivity and data. Ndegwa said the company spends between $400 million and $500 million annually on infrastructure in Kenya, underscoring the scale of investment required to expand network capacity and support the growth of digital services.
The infrastructure investments are central to Safaricom’s ambition to support an increasingly digital economy, where reliable connectivity underpins mobile payments, business operations and access to online services.
The company is also pursuing greater integration of its services through its “one app” super app, which has launched in Kenya. The platform is designed to bring multiple services together in one place, simplifying access for consumers while giving businesses tools to manage their activities.
Artificial intelligence is expected to support the platform by personalising user experiences and helping customers access services relevant to their needs.
The initiative forms part of Safaricom’s wider transition from a traditional telecommunications operator towards an integrated technology business, combining connectivity, financial services and digital solutions.
Ndegwa said the company’s growth strategy must balance commercial performance with its broader social purpose, with Safaricom and M-PESA seeking to deliver both business value and wider societal impact.
As the company expands its services and geographic footprint, its next phase of growth will depend on its ability to scale digital financial products, strengthen transaction security, invest in connectivity and develop platforms that respond to the changing needs of customers and businesses across Africa.
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