The news that Safaricom and PayPal have brokered a deal via TransferTo to enable M-Pesa users to withdraw from and deposit into their PayPal wallets via M-Pesa has been well received but the challenge is, the process is not as straightforward as we would have wished it to be. So here’s a quick guide on how to use the service:
Withdrawing from PayPal
First, access PayPal’s Mobile Money portal
- Tap on the GET STARTED button that will redirect you to log in with your PayPal credentials
- Give the service access to your PayPal account by clicking on AGREE on the popup menu
- Add your M-Pesa phone number, you will receive a verification code that you will use to LINK YOUR ACCOUNT
You will have to access this portal everytime you want to withdraw money from your PayPal account, there’s no other way.
Depositing to PayPal
The service allows one to deposit into their PayPal wallet and the process is as follows:
- Open M-Pesa on your phone
- Go to PayBill and enter PayBill number 800088
- Enter the phone number you linked your PayBill account to as the account number
- Enter Amount and complete the transaction
One thing to note, the service is not free. You will be charged certain fees such as 3% conversion rate when withdrawing and 4% conversion rate when depositing and M-Pesa PayBill charges that can go up to Kes.220 when making deposits. Also, it is unfortunate that TransferTo has not implemented M-Pesa’s new API, seeing that this service is being officially supported by Safaricom is even more disappointing that we have to do things, old school.
