Fuliza Ya Pochi: Safaricom Opens Overdraft Credit to More Than One Million Micro-MerchantsFuliza Ya Pochi: Safaricom Opens Overdraft Credit to More Than One Million Micro-Merchants
Key Highlights
- Safaricom has extended overdraft credit to the small traders who take payments through Pochi La Biashara, starting with qualifying merchants.
- More than one million micro-businesses can now borrow short term, but only if they have actively used Pochi for over six months.
- Safaricom has not published the borrowing charges or the overdraft limits, so the true cost for traders remains unclear.
Safaricom has launched Fuliza Ya Pochi, an overdraft service that gives more than one million qualifying micro-businesses short-term credit through their Pochi La Biashara wallets, extending a borrowing product that began with individual M-Pesa users in 2019.
The launch matters for small traders because it lets a merchant complete a payment when the business wallet is empty. Pochi La Biashara serves more than two million micro-merchants in total, but only those who meet the eligibility rules can borrow. Digital credit of this kind sits within the supervisory reach of the Central Bank of Kenya, which licenses digital lenders.
How Fuliza Ya Pochi works
Merchants must have actively used Pochi La Biashara for more than six months. Credit limits depend on each business's activity, and repayment is deducted automatically from later payments that arrive in the merchant's Pochi wallet.
The overdraft can be used to pay suppliers, make Lipa na M-Pesa Buy Goods payments, send money and settle utility bills. Merchants can apply through the Pochi Mini App on My OneApp or by dialling *334#.
Chief executive Peter Ndegwa said Fuliza Ya Pochi "helps merchants overcome these short-term challenges while continuing to build their businesses."
Where it sits among the company's credit products
The service adds to the original Fuliza overdraft and to Fuliza ya Biashara, which serves qualifying Lipa na M-Pesa merchants. Mwenendo earlier reported on how the company is widening its tools for shopkeepers with M-Pesa Jumbe, which lets merchants share payment alerts with up to 50 staff.
The target is informal businesses that use mobile money daily and may face temporary working-capital gaps. As Mwenendo earlier reported, the operator also opened a Shari'ah money-market fund on the platform, a sign of how far it is pushing financial services through one network.
What traders still need to know
The launch announcement did not specify the overdraft limits or the borrowing charges. Because repayment is taken automatically from incoming payments, a merchant's daily takings could be reduced before the money is available for stock or rent, so traders should weigh the cost and repayment terms before using the facility.
Mwenendo will report the charges and limits once they are published.
In Summary
- Who can borrow?
- More than one million qualifying micro-businesses that have actively used Pochi La Biashara for over six months.
- What is Fuliza Ya Pochi?
- An overdraft that lets merchants make payments when their Pochi wallet lacks funds.
- When was it announced?
- The launch was reported on 22 October 2026.
- How do merchants apply?
- Through the Pochi Mini App on My OneApp or by dialling *334#.
- How is it repaid?
- Repayments are deducted automatically from later payments received into the merchant's Pochi wallet.
- What is not yet known?
- The overdraft limits and borrowing charges were not disclosed.