NAIROBI, Kenya- Kenyans borrowed Sh1.16 trillion through Safaricom’s Fuliza overdraft service in the six months to September 2026, an 84% increase from Sh629 billion during the same period a year earlier.
The number of Fuliza users rose 88.9% to 17.2 million, underlining the growing reliance on short-term mobile credit for everyday payments, household expenses and small-business cash-flow needs.
The figures were released in Safaricom’s half-year investor briefing for the financial year ending March 2027, as the telecommunications firm reported strong growth in its M-PESA financial-services business.
More users, smaller loans
While the value of Fuliza disbursements surged, the average amount borrowed fell by 24.6% to Sh192, from KSh254.60 in the comparable period last year.
The trend suggests that the growth was driven more by a sharp rise in the number of users and frequent small advances than by customers taking larger loans.
Fuliza allows M-PESA users to complete transactions when their wallet balances are insufficient, with the outstanding overdraft automatically recovered when money enters the account.
The product is operated through a partnership involving Safaricom, NCBA Bank and KCB Bank Kenya.
The Sh1.16 trillion figure represents total advances disbursed during the period, rather than the value of loans outstanding at a single point in time. This means customers can borrow, repay and access the service again several times within the six-month period.
Spread across the 183 days between April and September, Fuliza disbursements averaged about Sh6.3 billion a day.
Fuliza revenue rises to Sh4.9 billion
Safaricom generated Sh4.9 billion in Fuliza revenue during the half-year, up 86% from the previous year.
The product accounted for the bulk of the company’s mobile-lending earnings, reflecting the growing importance of short-term credit within the broader M-PESA ecosystem.
Credit revenue across Safaricom’s financial-services portfolio rose 54.4% to Sh7 billion, while the number of customers using credit products increased to 18 million.
The value of credit disbursed across the portfolio rose 69.5% to Sh1.3 trillion.
The strong expansion in digital lending comes as Safaricom deepens M-PESA’s role beyond person-to-person transfers into payments, savings, investments, insurance and credit.
M-PESA crosses Sh100 billion revenue mark
M-PESA revenue rose 13.6% to KSh100.1 billion in the six months to September, crossing the KSh100 billion mark for the first time in a half-year reporting period.
The platform processed 27.4 billion transactions, up 25.2%, with the value of those transactions rising 16.6% to Sh23.6 trillion.
Financial-services revenue was among the fastest-growing M-PESA segments, rising 55.3% to Sh7.1 billion.
Safaricom Group reported net income of Sh58.2 billion for the six months to September, a 35.9% increase, while group service revenue rose 13.1% to Sh226.1 billion.
The company’s Kenya business remained the main earnings driver, while its Ethiopia operation narrowed its losses as it moved closer to its targeted operational break-even point.
The rapid rise in Fuliza borrowing is likely to renew debate over the role of digital credit in Kenya.
For millions of users, the service offers quick access to small advances when cash is short.
But the scale of repeat borrowing also highlights the growing place of overdrafts in the daily financial lives of Kenyan households and businesses.
