Safaricom is expanding how customers use M-PESA at the point of sale, introducing QR-code payments, contactless smartphone transactions and an artificial intelligence-powered feature designed to reduce the manual entry of payment details.
The new options, developed through a partnership with Pesapal, extend M-PESA’s payment experience through three approaches: Scan-to-Pay, Tap-to-Pay and AI Pay. The collaboration enables Dynamic Scan-to-Pay and Tap-to-Pay through Pesapal point-of-sale (POS) devices, bringing these payment options to physical merchant locations.
The changes address a practical challenge in digital payments: entering payment information manually can add steps to a transaction. Safaricom’s new features are designed to simplify that process by allowing customers to scan a QR code, tap a compatible smartphone on a supported terminal or scan a receipt to capture payment information.
The announcement has also been covered by TechMoran and BusinessTech Kenya.
How Scan-to-Pay works
Scan-to-Pay allows customers to scan a QR code linked directly to a merchant’s M-PESA Till Number. Rather than manually entering the merchant’s payment details, customers can use the QR code to identify the payment destination.
Safaricom’s partnership with Pesapal adds Dynamic Scan-to-Pay, in which customers scan a QR code displayed on a Pesapal POS device. The merchant details and payment amount are automatically populated, allowing customers to verify the information before completing the transaction.
Step by step: Using Scan-to-Pay
Step 1: Identify the merchant’s QR code. Look for the QR code linked to the merchant’s M-PESA Till Number.
Step 2: Scan the code. Scan the merchant’s QR code using the supported payment experience.
Step 3: Review the payment details. With Dynamic Scan-to-Pay on a Pesapal POS, the merchant details and payment amount are automatically populated.
Step 4: Verify the information. Check that the merchant details and amount are correct.
Step 5: Complete the payment. Follow the supported payment process to finalise the transaction.
The press release confirms these core steps but does not specify the exact application menus or screens customers must use.
How Tap-to-Pay works
Tap-to-Pay enables customers with NFC-enabled smartphones to tap their devices on a Pesapal POS terminal, verify the transaction details and complete the payment.
NFC, or near-field communication, allows compatible devices to exchange information over a short distance. In this implementation, the supported smartphone and Pesapal terminal provide the contactless interaction used to initiate the payment.
Step by step: Using Tap-to-Pay
Step 1: Use an NFC-enabled smartphone. The release specifies that customers need a smartphone with NFC capability.
Step 2: Tap the phone on a Pesapal POS. Bring the compatible device to the supported terminal to initiate the transaction.
Step 3: Verify the transaction details. Check the information presented for the payment.
Step 4: Complete the payment. Follow the transaction process to finalise the payment.
The release does not detail device activation, specific phone settings or the precise confirmation screens. Those requirements should be confirmed with Safaricom before providing more detailed device-specific instructions.
AI Pay: Scanning receipts to capture payment details
AI Pay is a new addition to the M-PESA payment experience on My OneApp, which Safaricom says has more than seven million downloads.
The feature allows customers to scan receipts, whether printed or handwritten. Where the information is available and recognised, AI Pay automatically identifies and populates the merchant’s Till or PayBill details and the payment amount.
The feature is designed to reduce the need for customers to enter those details manually. It differs from Scan-to-Pay because it works with receipt information rather than relying on a merchant’s QR code. It also differs from Tap-to-Pay, which uses NFC-enabled smartphones and supported Pesapal terminals.
Step by step: Using AI Pay
Step 1: Access My OneApp. AI Pay is part of the M-PESA payment experience on My OneApp.
Step 2: Scan the receipt. The feature supports printed and handwritten receipts.
Step 3: Review the captured information. Where available, AI Pay identifies and populates the Till or PayBill details and payment amount.
Step 4: Check the payment information. Verify the details before proceeding with the transaction.
Step 5: Complete the payment. Continue through the supported payment process.
Safaricom’s announcement confirms the receipt-scanning and automatic population capabilities but does not provide a detailed menu-by-menu guide or explain the full process for correcting incorrectly recognised information.
Three approaches to M-PESA payments
The three features address different payment situations.
Scan-to-Pay allows customers to scan a QR code linked to a merchant’s M-PESA Till Number. Dynamic Scan-to-Pay extends that functionality to QR codes displayed on Pesapal POS devices, automatically populating the merchant details and payment amount.
Tap-to-Pay provides a contactless option for customers with NFC-enabled smartphones using Pesapal POS terminals. AI Pay, meanwhile, uses receipt scanning to identify and populate Till or PayBill details and payment amounts where available.
Together, the features expand the ways customers can initiate M-PESA payments at physical merchant locations. Their usefulness will depend on the availability of supported payment options and the ability of customers and merchants to use them in everyday transactions.
Safaricom targets 500,000 Scan-to-Pay outlets
Safaricom says Scan-to-Pay is already available at more than 60,000 merchant outlets, with a target of expanding that network to 500,000 within the next year.
The target places merchant adoption at the centre of the rollout. Customers can only benefit from QR-based payments where merchants provide the necessary payment option, while Dynamic Scan-to-Pay and Tap-to-Pay depend on supported Pesapal POS devices.
Expanding the network could give more customers opportunities to use QR payments in physical commerce. However, the number of outlets alone will not show how frequently customers use the service or whether merchants experience a meaningful improvement in their payment processes.
The rollout will also take place alongside the expanding footprint of Pesapal POS devices, according to Safaricom. The company has not provided, in the announcement, a detailed breakdown of the deployment schedule or the number of new outlets expected to be added in each period.
What the Pesapal partnership adds
The collaboration combines Safaricom’s M-PESA payment ecosystem with Pesapal’s merchant payment infrastructure.
Pesapal says it serves businesses across Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Zambia. Its platform provides payment services and business tools to merchants ranging from small businesses to larger enterprises.
For this rollout, the most direct contribution described in the announcement is the use of Pesapal POS devices to enable Dynamic Scan-to-Pay and Tap-to-Pay at the point of sale.
Safaricom Group Chief Technology Officer James Maitai said the partnership was part of the company’s effort to move beyond enabling payments towards reimagining the payment experience. Pesapal founder Agosta Liko said the integration was intended to deliver faster transactions at checkout.
The partnership therefore focuses not only on transferring money but also on how customers interact with payment systems when purchasing goods and services.
M-PESA’s wider business significance
M-PESA generated more than KES182.7 billion in revenue in the financial year ended March 2026, according to Safaricom’s press release, underscoring the service’s importance to the telecommunications group’s business.
Expanding the ways customers can make payments gives Safaricom additional ways to develop the M-PESA experience at physical points of sale. QR-code payments, contactless transactions and AI-assisted receipt scanning address different parts of the payment process while remaining connected to the existing M-PESA ecosystem.
The announcement does not establish how much the new features will increase transaction volumes or revenue. Their commercial impact will depend on merchant adoption, customer usage and how effectively the options work across supported environments.
For now, the confirmed changes are specific: Scan-to-Pay uses merchant QR codes; Dynamic Scan-to-Pay on Pesapal POS devices automatically populates merchant details and the payment amount; Tap-to-Pay enables customers with NFC-enabled smartphones to pay through Pesapal POS terminals; and AI Pay scans printed or handwritten receipts to populate payment information where available.
The next milestone is Safaricom’s stated ambition to expand Scan-to-Pay from more than 60,000 merchant outlets to 500,000 within a year. Whether these payment options become routine for customers will depend on how widely they are deployed and how frequently merchants and consumers use them.