M-Pesa

M-Pesa is a mobile money service operated by Safaricom in Kenya and by Vodacom and partners in Tanzania, Mozambique and several other markets. It moves money between phone numbers rather than bank accounts, and in Kenya it is used by a majority of adults — which makes it the default funding rail for retail traders in the region, and the reason Africa-facing brokers list it prominently.

How a broker deposit works

Funding usually runs through a Paybill or Till number, either entered on the handset or triggered by the broker's site sending an STK push that you approve with your M-Pesa PIN. Money credits in seconds. Some brokers work through a local payment aggregator rather than directly, in which case the name on your M-Pesa statement will be the aggregator, not the broker — expected, but worth knowing before you assume a payment went astray.

Fees and limits

Safaricom's tariff applies to the transaction, and there are statutory per-transaction and daily limits set by the regulator, which change from time to time. Larger deposits therefore have to be split or moved by bank transfer instead. Brokers rarely add a fee of their own on top, but currency conversion does apply: your account is almost certainly denominated in dollars while M-Pesa moves shillings, and the conversion rate is the broker's or the aggregator's, not the interbank rate.

Withdrawals

Withdrawals back to M-Pesa are supported by brokers that use a local aggregator with payout capability, and typically arrive the same day. The registered phone number must belong to the account holder — a wallet in a relative's name will fund a deposit and then block the withdrawal under third-party rules.

What to check first

Confirm the broker entity serving your country and whether it is the one licensed by the FSCA or an offshore affiliate, because that determines what protection sits behind your balance. ProForexBrokers.com weighs the licensing entity ahead of the funding convenience for exactly this reason.