Safaricom and Pesapal are expanding digital payments in Kenya, with Scan to Pay already available at more than 60,000 merchant outlets and a target of reaching 500,000 within the next year.

The partnership is also introducing an improved Tap to Pay experience, building on Pesapal’s existing contactless payment capabilities and expanding the ways customers can pay at the point of sale.

The two companies are positioning the partnership around making everyday payments faster and simpler for both consumers and businesses.

The services will be available through the Safaricom My OneApp, giving customers access to the payment options from the same app they use for other Safaricom services.

Scan to Pay uses QR codes displayed by merchants. Customers scan the code using their phone and complete the payment through the supported payment platform.

While the QR payment model is not new, its reach has grown significantly. More than 60,000 merchants are already enabled for Scan to Pay, giving the new partnership an established merchant base rather than requiring businesses to adopt an entirely new payment system.

Pesapal’s Scan to Pay service allows customers to use their phones to scan QR codes at participating physical and online merchants. The company says customers can link a Visa card to the Pesapal Mobile app and use the phone to complete payments.

Safaricom and PesaPalSca-to-Pay

The second part of the partnership focuses on Tap to Pay, which uses NFC technology to allow customers with compatible smartphones to make payments by tapping their devices on supported terminals.

James Maitai, Group Chief Technology and Information Officer at Safaricom, said the objective is to make the payment process easier for businesses, particularly smaller merchants.

“Our focus is simple. We want to make it easier for merchants, especially small businesses, to serve more customers efficiently. When you visit a supermarket or a restaurant, most of the time you have to wait for someone to bring the bill, wait for the payment process, and then wait again for the transaction to go through.”

Tap to Pay is effectively an evolution of Pesapal’s earlier contactless payment work, including its M-Pesa 1Tap wristband proposition. The new experience shifts the emphasis towards using NFC-enabled smartphones, including compatible Android phones and iPhones, to tap and pay.

Pesapal already supports NFC payments on its Sabi point-of-sale terminals. Its current platform supports mobile and card payments, including NFC payment methods.

M-Pesa 1Tap

Agosta Liko, co-founder and CEO of Pesapal, stated that the partnership aims to streamline the payment process by eliminating unnecessary steps.

“For merchants, it is also easier because it reduces the risk of entering the wrong PIN, sending money to the wrong person, or dealing with failed or incomplete payments.”

Pesapal has previously offered a tap-based M-PESA payment experience through Supertap, where customers link their M-PESA number to Pesapal Mobile, tap their phone at a Pesapal Sabi POS, confirm the amount, and enter their PIN.

The latest partnership therefore brings together several pieces of an existing payments ecosystem rather than introducing QR or contactless payments to Kenya for the first time.

For consumers, the proposition is about having more ways to complete a payment at the point of sale. A customer can scan a merchant’s QR code where Scan to Pay is available or use an NFC-enabled phone at a compatible terminal where Tap to Pay is supported.

For businesses, the wider objective is to speed up checkout while giving merchants more options for accepting digital payments.

“Our progress is ultimately about serving our customers better. Together with our partners, and guided by our vision, we will continue working together to improve innovation in payments and other areas.”

The partnership comes as Kenya’s payment market continues to move beyond the traditional phone-based payment flow, with QR codes, NFC, and digital wallets giving consumers additional ways to pay at physical points of sale.