CMA Licences Safaricom, Airtel Money as Market Intermediaries

Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority has approved Safaricom Plc and Airtel Money Kenya Limited to operate as Intermediary Service Platform Providers, allowing telecom operators to link mobile money users directly to regulated capital markets.

Rather than relying on standalone brokerage platforms, the new model integrates capital markets access into mobile money systems already used for routine financial transactions, bringing investment products closer to existing payment and savings activity.

Access to Investment Products via Mobile Platforms

Through the ISPP licences, Safaricom and Airtel Money can offer approved investment products including securities and other capital markets instruments within their mobile money platforms. The CMA said the initiative is intended to stimulate competition, widen investor choice and improve digital access to regulated investment products.

Within this framework, telecom operators assume a formal intermediary role between mobile money services and capital markets infrastructure, expanding the channels through which retail investors can participate in the formal investment market.

Competitive Mobile Money Landscape

The approvals come amid intense competition in Kenya’s mobile money sector. Data from the Communications Authority of Kenya shows Safaricom held 65.3% of mobile subscriptions in the first quarter of the 2025/2026 financial year, followed by Airtel at 30.7%.

In mobile money services, M-Pesa maintained an 89.7% market share, compared with Airtel Money’s 10.3%. With 48.6 million mobile money subscriptions and a penetration rate of 92.8%, the sector continues to anchor Kenya’s financial system, particularly in extending services to underserved populations.

Telecom Operators Expand Beyond Core Services

The ISPP approvals also show how telecom operators are moving beyond traditional voice and data services. Safaricom and Airtel have steadily expanded their digital ecosystems to include lending, savings, insurance and merchant services.

Supported by established platforms, agent networks and digital infrastructure, both operators have the capacity to broaden access to Kenya’s capital markets outlook.