Kenya’s telecom operator Safaricom and Visa, the global leader in digital payments launched the M-pesa visa virtual card on Thursday to facilitate payments for Kenyan global shoppers.
According to a statement by Safaricom, the new M-Pesa Visa virtual cards will open global shopping for Kenyan consumers allowing secure cashless payments at merchant locations in over 200 countries through Visa’s global network.
“M-PESA has over the past fifteen years evolved from a simple money transfer service to become a robust payment platform and driver of financial inclusion for Kenyans. This has paved the way for numerous innovative services and by partnering with Visa to provide the M-PESA GlobalPay Visa virtual card, we are looking to bridge the gap for our customers who would like to use M-PESA anywhere across the world,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO, Safaricom.
Speaking during the launch, Visa Vice President and General Manager for East Africa Corine Mbiaketcha, said Visa is committed to expanding the payments ecosystem across Africa by opening up the global marketplace for every single consumer.
“Safaricom has already transformed how money moves in Kenya, and we are excited to be working together to develop new and innovative payments products and services that can eliminate barriers to global commerce for merchants and consumers in sub-Saharan Africa, through Visa’s global footprint,” she said.
