Safaricom and Gulf African Bank, a Shari’ah-compliant bank, have announced the launch of Halal Pesa, a Shari’ah-compliant mobile financing solution.

A customer can use the service to access financing and receive the requested amount in full. The repayment period is 30 days and done at a 5 per cent margin at commodity Murabaha prices.

Customers will initially be provided with a personalized facility limit based on their M-PESA usage. The limit can be increased based on a customer’s usage of Halal Pesa.

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“Our aim is to provide instantaneous access to interest-free credit through Halal Pesa. We are glad that we could partner with a like-minded partner like Safaricom limited to advance this vision,” said Abdalla Abdulkhalik, MD – Gulf African Bank.

Halal Pesa By Safaricom: Kenya’s First Shariah-Compliant Mobile Loan Product

The product was developed as a response to suggestions from M-Pesa customers on how to accommodate Muslims in financial programs.

“It is the first in Africa, a halal-certified financial product that will be serving an area that has been neglected in the past. When we came up with Fuliza, it was the first in the world,” said Peter Ndegwa, CEO -Safaricom.

All M-PESA customers can access Halal Pesa as a Mini App under the “Grow” option on the M-PESA Super App and by dialling *334# under “Loans and Savings”.

“We remain keen on partnerships that enable us to provide a wide variety of financial solutions that meet the diversified needs of our customers further broadening financial inclusion to ensure that we leave no one behind.” Mr Ndegwa.

Safaricom has been aggressively expanding its portfolio the past few years. The latest in their M-PESA Super App is the Little Cab Mini App for hailing rides, and Makao Mini App, focused on booking holiday houses. We can only speculate what other services they might soon be adding to their basket.