M-KOPA Reaches 10 Million Customers as Smartphone Financing Fuels Rapid Growth Across Africa

M-KOPA has surpassed 10 million customers across Kenya, Uganda, Nigeria, Ghana and South Africa, marking a major milestone for the pan-African fintech as demand for its smartphone financing and digital financial services continues to grow.

The achievement highlighted the company’s rapid expansion since it entered the smartphone financing market in 2020. While it took M-KOPA eight years to reach its first one million customers after launching with solar products in 2012, it has added the remaining nine million customers in just six years.

The fintech attributes much of its growth to its “More than a Phone” platform, which combines smartphone financing with services such as insurance, device protection and access to credit at the point of purchase. The offering targets informal sector workers, including traders, boda boda riders, tailors and small business owners, many of whom have traditionally been excluded from formal financial services because they lack regular payslips or conventional credit histories.

M-KOPA Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer Jesse Moore said the milestone demonstrates that informal workers have long been financially reliable, provided they are offered products designed around how they earn and manage their income.

According to M-KOPA’s customer survey, nine out of 10 users report that M-KOPA’s product have had a positive impact on their lives.

The latest milestone comes as the informal economy continues to dominate employment across sub-Saharan Africa, with nearly 90% of workers earning a living outside formal employment. The segment represents a significant long-term growth opportunity as Africa’s population of economically active, non-salaried workers is expected to expand in the coming decades.

In Kenya, M-KOPA strengthened its local manufacturing operations by opening what it describes as Africa’s largest smartphone assembly factory in 2023. The facility employs more than 400 people, has achieved ISO certification and has produced more than 3.3 million smartphones to date.

Furthermore, the expansion has also gathered pace beyond East Africa, with Nigeria becoming the company’s fastest-growing market, reaching one million customers in a shorter period than any of M-KOPA’s other markets. The company’s operations are supported by a direct sales network of more than 40,000 agents across its five African markets.

Chief Financial Officer Faraimose Kutadzaushe said the milestone reflects the strength of a business model built around serving Africa’s informal workforce and signals the company’s ambitions for continued expansion across the continent.

Financially, M-KOPA said its revenue has grown by an average of 50% annually since 2020. The company has also received international recognition, appearing on the Financial Times’ list of Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies for five consecutive years and on CNBC’s list of the World’s Top Fintech Companies for the second year running.

Download the free Kaspersky SMB Cybersecurity Guide here to learn how businesses can move beyond traditional antivirus and build a more resilient approach to cybersecurity.