After the government proposed an increase on the excise duty charged on mobile money transactions, it was only a matter of time before we saw service providers adjusting accordingly and of course, the consumer would feel the biggest pinch.
First in line is Safaricom who recently announced a change in their M-Pesa transaction charges effective July 1, 2018. The new charges have an increase of between Kes.1 and Kes.3 across different transaction brackets.
Withdrawing amounts between Kes.501 and Kes.5000 will cost you one shilling more than previously charged. Withdrawing amounts between Kes.5001 and Kes.10,000 will cost you two shillings more than it did before. A three shillings increase had been placed on withdrawals of amounts between Kes.10,001 and Kes.15,000 while withdrawing anything between Kes.15,0001 and Kes.35,000 will cost you four shilling more than before.
Unexpectedly, Safaricom has cut down the cost of withdrawing amounts between Kes. 35,001 and Kes.50,000 will be charged five shillings less than they were before and withdrawing amounts above Kes. 50,000 will cost a whole thirty shillings less than before.
M-Pesa Kadogo Affected
The celebrated M-Pesa Kadogo has received a beating after Safaricom put a limit on the number of free transactions customers can benefit from. Previously, customers could send and withdraw amounts of up to Kes.100 for free but now, customers will only be eligible to three free transactions per day with consequent transactions charged at one shilling for anything below Kes.50 and two shillings for anything above Kes.50 but below Kes.100.
Safaricom attributed these changes to The Finance Bill 2018 and The Provisional Collection of Taxes and Duties Act. Below are the new M-Pesa transaction charges as of July 1, 2018:
