Kenya expands mobile payments with Scan-to-Pay and Tap-to-Pay rollout

Safaricom and Pesapal have launched two new payment services, Scan-to-Pay and Tap-to-Pay, operating through Pesapal’s point-of-sale terminals. These tools integrate Safaricom’s M-PESA network with Pesapal’s merchant systems to streamline transactions and eliminate manual data entry at checkout counters. The collaboration aims to modernize payment processing for businesses across Kenya.

Scan-to-Pay is now active at more than 60,000 retail locations, with plans to expand to 500,000 outlets within the next 12 months. Customers use a QR code on the terminal to automatically populate merchant details and transaction amounts, requiring only a confirmation to complete the payment. Meanwhile, Tap-to-Pay leverages NFC-enabled smartphones, allowing users to tap their devices against the terminal, verify the transaction, and finalize payments without manual input.

James Maitai, Safaricom’s Group Chief Technology Officer, emphasized that these innovations go beyond transaction speed. The partnership combines Safaricom’s dominant payment volume with Pesapal’s extensive merchant network to create a more intuitive checkout process. This aligns with evolving consumer behavior in Kenya, where digital payment adoption continues to rise.

Kenya’s financial inclusion rate has surged from 26.7% in 2006 to 84.8% by 2024, driven largely by mobile money platforms like M-PESA. The new services, particularly Scan-to-Pay, could further accelerate this trend by simplifying transactions at smaller businesses, where manual entry remains widespread. Smaller merchants, often excluded from traditional banking systems, now gain access to faster, more reliable payment methods.

Safaricom has also introduced AI Pay, a feature within its My OneApp that automates payment entry. The app, downloaded over 7 million times, allows users to scan printed or handwritten receipts, extracting transaction details to auto-fill M-PESA’s Till or PayBill systems. This eliminates errors and reduces the time customers spend manually inputting transaction codes, particularly useful for those who prefer cash-based purchases but need digital records.

M-PESA remains the backbone of Safaricom’s operations, contributing KES 182.7 billion in annual revenue as of the fiscal year ending March 2026. The service supports 41 million active users in Kenya, facilitating everything from utility bill payments to microloans. The three new tools, Scan-to-Pay, Tap-to-Pay, and AI Pay, are designed to sustain this growth while addressing the needs of both merchants and consumers in an increasingly digital economy.

These developments follow Safaricom’s record revenue of KES 400 billion for the same period, with a customer base of 71.6 million across Kenya and Ethiopia. The company’s network covers over 99% of Kenya’s population, ensuring widespread access to digital financial services. For merchants, the new tools reduce disputes tied to manual entry mistakes, while customers benefit from additional payment flexibility beyond mobile apps.