Safaricom, the telecommunications company that operates mobile money service M-PESA, is reportedly in talks to expand into money management space.

The company is in negotiations with fund managers, investment banks and insurance companies to launch mobile-based savings and wealth management products, Bloomberg reported.

In an interview, Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa said that the firm will seek approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to launch these products in the next 18 months.

Ndegwa said: “We want our customers to feel they have a channel they can use to access products that are in the market.”

Safaricom’s mobile-money payments platform M-PESA enables its 27 million customers to pay without having to use a smartphone.

Ndegwa said that the company expects that its income from M-PESA will continue to grow, as Kenyans increased their use of the platform amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

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M-PESA is a joint venture between Safaricom and Vodacom Group.

It already offers savings and loan products from Kenyan lenders KCB Group and NCBA Group.

Ndegwa said that Safaricom is planning to bid for an Ethiopian telecommunication license.

However, the government of Ethiopia will not allow M-Pesa’s foray into the country immediately after the company obtains its licence.

Ndegwa added: “There are things we want to get right. One is the mobile-money license. At the moment it is not clear at what point it will be opened up, although the government has said within three years.”