The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has approved Safaricom's request to mask customer names and phone numbers in Lipa na M-Pesa transactions, enhancing digital privacy for users.

• Merchants will now only see a customer's first name and a partially masked phone number (e.g., 07XX XXX 123) instead of full details.
• This change impacts both Lipa na M-Pesa Till and Paybill transactions.
• The decision follows years of advocacy for improved data protection in mobile money transactions.

Safaricom has received approval from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) to implement a privacy feature on M-Pesa that will mask customer phone numbers during transactions.

• The approval allows for the masking of phone numbers in peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers, with plans to extend it to merchant payments.
• Key organizations involved are Safaricom PLC and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).
• This initiative aligns with the Data Protection Act, 2019, requiring minimal data collection for service delivery.

Airtel Kenya has significantly boosted its popular Amazing Daily data plan, offering subscribers double the data for the same price.

• For KES 99, users now get 4GB of data, valid for 24 hours.
• The offer is from Airtel Kenya, a key player in the Kenyan telecommunications market.
• A new 2GB bundle is also available for KES 50, valid until midnight of the purchase day.