My OneApp records 7.3 million downloads as Safaricom works to complete customer migration
Safaricom’s My OneApp has reached 4.5 million monthly active users following a launch that CEO Peter Ndegwa acknowledged disappointed some customers. The company reported 7.3 million downloads and KSh2 trillion in transactions processed through the platform as it works to bring users of its standalone M-PESA and MySafaricom applications into one digital environment.
Ndegwa told analysts and journalists that the company had made mistakes during the initial rollout and had since worked to address customer complaints. He said Safaricom had made progress in improving the experience, with customer feedback on iOS and Android standing above 75%. The company is now concentrating on growing engagement and moving customers from its older applications.
The migration involves two main customer groups. Safaricom said approximately 100,000 users of the standalone M-PESA app were yet to move to My OneApp, while about 1.8 million MySafaricom users remained to be migrated. Ndegwa said the company was allowing customers to move at their own pace while encouraging them to understand the additional capabilities available through the unified platform.
The transition also requires Safaricom to ensure that customers retain access to the services they previously used. Ndegwa said the company was taking a structured approach to moving MySafaricom users, with attention to ensuring that customers did not lose information or functionality during the process. He said the capabilities available through the older applications had been incorporated into My OneApp, alongside additional features.
Safaricom also addressed problems experienced by customers living outside Kenya. Ndegwa said the company had resolved several issues affecting diaspora users, an important group for a platform that combines mobile money, connectivity and other digital services. The improvements followed customer feedback that had identified difficulties with the earlier experience.
My OneApp brings together services that previously operated through separate Safaricom applications. Its features include M-PESA transactions, connectivity services, digital commerce, mini-applications, savings and investment products, credit, insurance and customer rewards. The company has also introduced features such as eSIM, Tap to Pay, Split Bill and Shop and Pay as part of its wider digital offering.
The platform’s commercial potential rests on how effectively Safaricom can connect these services. A customer who opens the application to make a payment may also access savings, investment products, credit or insurance. Businesses can use the platform to reach customers through digital commerce services, while connectivity features give Safaricom another way to bring its telecommunications products into the same customer experience.
Safaricom said it had also been using artificial intelligence to personalise customer recommendations and offers. The company’s presentation reported that AI-powered recommendations reached 17.7 million customers monthly. The approach forms part of a wider strategy to use customer data and digital services to improve engagement across its business.
The reported 4.5 million monthly active users provide a more useful measure of platform engagement than downloads alone. Safaricom’s next task is to complete the migration of customers from its older applications while encouraging existing users to make greater use of the services available through My OneApp. The company is positioning the platform as a central access point for its financial, connectivity and digital commerce businesses.
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