Safaricom launches new feature to cut wrong M-Pesa transfers

Customers sending money using M-Pesa platform will now be able to see the name of the targeted recipient before completing the transaction in Safaricom’s #ticker:SCOM latest bid to minimise chances of erroneous transfers.

The new feature is an improvement from the current one where customers have to complete the transaction first before getting the option of cancelling it within 25 seconds.

“Customers now have the opportunity to truly confirm the details of a transaction before it can progress making reversals a thing of the past,” said Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa.

The development comes after Safaricom on Thursday rolled out M-Pesa services on the *334# menu, allowing for this new capability.

The new menu will complement the traditional location of M-Pesa services in the SIM card tool kit menu, which Safaricom says does not allow much flexibility.

This is a step further in minimising erroneous transfers given that the current feature allows customers to send money before the name of the recipient is displayed and only have 25 seconds to cancel the transaction if it is erroneous.

Customers experiencing network challenges or in a hurry have been missing out on the opportunity to stop such transactions.

The new service is especially targeted at non-smartphone users or as an alternative to the Safaricom App.

To use the new service, customers have to dial *334# upon which they will be presented with a choice of the different M-Pesa services including “Send Money”.

The *334# platform brings together all services that have previously been offered through different quick codes, saving customers from having to remember the different numbers.

Other options now available on the new code include M-Pesa Global which allows customers to send and receive money across the world.

Safaricom now has 24.91 million active M-Pesa users, with the service now accepted in over 173,000 outlets in Kenya and 167 countries worldwide.

In the financial year ended March, M-Pesa accounted for Sh84.44 billion or 33.6 percent of Safaricom’s Sh251.22 billion service revenue.