About Time, But Not Too Soon: CBK Pushes to Cut Exorbitant Mobile Money Charges

The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has unveiled plans to slash and cap the fees telecom companies charge for mobile money transfers through platforms such as M-Pesa and Airtel Money.

In its latest National Financial Inclusion Strategy, CBK proposes lowering the average transaction fee from the current Ksh.23 to Ksh.10 by 2028, while also capping person-to-person (P2P) transfer charges.

The regulator noted that mobile money access among Kenyan adults has grown sharply, rising from 27 percent in 2006 to 82.3 percent in 2024. But recent data shows that growth in access and usage is beginning to flatten. CBK linked this slowdown to high transaction costs, which remain one of the biggest barriers to wider adoption of digital financial services.

“Most users still rely primarily on basic services like person-to-person transfers, with limited uptake of advanced offerings such as digital credit, insurance, or savings,” CBK stated in the strategy document.

The lender added that weak interoperability between providers, costly transactions, low financial literacy, and products that fail to reflect the realities of underserved groups are limiting the growth of Kenya’s mobile money ecosystem.

CBK has labeled the proposal as a high-priority reform, but it will require parliamentary approval before it can be enacted.

If passed, the long overdue move could significantly lower the cost of cash transfers for millions of Kenyans. However, it would also reduce profit margins for telecom companies, which have long relied on mobile money fees as a key revenue driver.

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