It is human nature to desire a flawless life, one which is free from mistakes, but fallibility is also our inherent tendency. We can’t escape that because humans are a work in progress, not complete, and prone to making errors, even that result from forgetfulness as a human fault.
An example of such an error is when you buy Safaricom airtime from the Mpesa mobile wallet, and instead of keying in the correct amount you want to purchase, you end up padding more digits to it and buying a significant amount of credit airtime which you never needed.
It is financially and emotionally devastating when the money is especially for emergencies, school fees, household bills, and other pre-planned uses. How can I change this Safaricom Credit to Mpesa cash? Will Safaricom convert my airtime back to real money? You will start asking yourself.
When you dial Safaricom customer care through 100 for assistance in returning the mobile credit as Mpesa cash on your phone, you get disappointed as soon as the customer representative answers the call – Safaricom does not convert airtime to cash.
Thankfully, as author Stewart Stafford puts it, “Errors can be the launchpad of great ideas,” Some innovators were able to come up with an idea that led to the birth of small business startups that buy excess Safaricom airtime from customers in exchange for withdrawable money deposited back on Mpesa.
Getting cash from Safaricom credit airtime
Find out how to get cash from your airtime in Kenya by following the steps below. Many airtime-to-cash conversion companies often charge hefty fees for this convenience.
Solution 1: DBS Kenya Airtime To Mpesa
DBS Kenya converts excess Safaricom airtime to cash from Ksh50 to Ksh50,000 per person. It charges a convenience fee of 30% for every converted airtime. Follow this procedure;
- Visit dbskenya.com
- On the navigation menu at the top of the homepage, go to ‘CONVERT NOW’
- Choose ‘SAFARICOM AIRTIME’
- Enter the amount to convert and go to ‘START CONVERTING’
- Enter your billing details – phone number to send airtime credit and phone number to receive cash after airtime conversion
- Click ‘PLACE ORDER’
To transfer the excess Safaricom mobile credit, dial *456*2*3# and enter the number received via SMS from DBS Kenya as the recipient of the airtime. After the transfer, you will receive cash via Mpesa within 5-10 minutes.
Solution 2: BambaSwap
With BambaSwap, you get 70% of your airtime as cash. 30% is the processing fee. It is the most convenient way of changing Safaricom airtime to hard cash because everything is online. Here is how to go about its airtime conversion;
- Visit bambaswap.com
- On the homepage, click ‘Convert Airtime to Cash
- In the Convert Airtime to M-Pesa Cash Instantly section, enter the amount of Safaricom airtime you want to convert and your phone number
- You will view payable cash. Hit ‘Go’
- Check the highlighted phone number on the web page and transfer the airtime before getting your Mpesa cash in less than five minutes
You can use these ways to change airtime to cash in Kenya. Most of them also work with other networks like Telkom and Airtel.
