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M Pesa Meets Visa, To Make Global Travel Easier
Travelog
Courtesy
A partnership between Safaricom and Visa, the global leader in digital payments, has seen the introduction of the first M-Pesa GlobalPay Visa Virtual card. The virtual card allows cashless payments at merchant locations in over 200 countries through Visa’s global network, empowering over 30million M-Pesa users to shop online globally and make seamless and secure payments.
The M-Pesa GlobalPay VISA Virtual card is a timely service tailored to meet the increasing needs of Kenyans using global apps and shopping websites for entertainment, retail, business and even when travelling abroad.
Customers can activate the card via the M-Pesa App by selecting M-Pesa GlobalPay, under “Pay” or “Grow” option. They can also activate it by dialling *334# then selecting option 6 for “Lipa Na M-Pesa” followed by “M-Pesa GlobalPay”. Both options will require the customer to use their secret M-Pesa PIN. The customer can then view their card details and generate the “CVV” required to confirm online card transactions, manage their cards, set up repeat payments and access their Mini-Statement.
In addition to providing customers with the freedom and convenience of transacting across the world, the M-Pesa GlobalPay Visa virtual card builds on M-Pesa’s security by empowering customers to generate a unique CVV for a 30-minute period. Customers will key in their M-Pesa PIN each time they generate a CVV. This feature ensures all the details of the card required to perform a transaction are only known to the customer.
The M-Pesa GlobalPay Visa Virtual Card will be exclusive for international, online payments outside the country to protect customers from incurring forex conversion costs on local online payments billed in Kenya Shillings.
From left, Safaricom PLC CEO Peter Ndegwa, Visa Vice President and General Manager for East Africa Corine Mbiaketcha Nana and Eliud Kipchoge on stage engenge on a discussion on ending the global barriers during the Mpesa Global launch in partnership with Visa.
Eliud Kipchoge speaking during the launch
Eliud Kipchoge, Alexander Okwaro, Visa Vice President and General Manager for East Africa Corine Mbiaketcha Nana and Eva Sarwiri-Ngigi of Visa together hold a dummy Visa card during the Mpesa Global launch in partnership with Visa at the Olpejeta Conservancy in Nanyuki.
Safaricom PLC CEO Peter Ndegwa addresses the invited guests attending the Mpesa Global launch in partnership with Visa.
Once a customer performs a transaction with the card, they will receive an SMS with the prevailing exchange rate for the transaction value. Transactions will be subject to current M-Pesa limits of Sh150,000 per transaction and Sh300,000 per day at the prevailing Forex rates.
“M-Pesa has over the past 15 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,” Peter Ndegwa,the Safaricom CEO, said during the Thursday launch.
According to the Vice President of General Manager for East Africa for Visa, Corine Mbiaketcha, the partnership is part of their commitment to expanding the payments ecosystem across Africa by opening up the global marketplace for every single consumer.
“By leveraging our vast global network and experience as well as Safaricom’s local know-how and large subscriber base, we are charting a new path for digital payments. We remain optimistic that this partnership will go a long way in opening the global e-commerce market to Kenya's significant unbanked and underbanked population,” shesaid.