Nairobi — As of March 7, 2025, Kenya’s telecom giant Safaricom is doubling down on its new Ziidi Money Market Fund (MMF), launched in December 2024 with regulatory nod from the Capital Markets Authority (CMA) in November. At M-PESA’s 18th anniversary briefing today—timed with the White House Crypto Summit buzz—Safaricom touted Ziidi’s meteoric rise: over 1 million sign-ups and KES 6 billion ($46 million) in funds. Yet, its first MMF, Mali, launched in 2020 with Genghis Capital, is mired in controversy, technical glitches, and a legal spat—leaving users guessing about its fate.
Ziidi vs. Mali: A Tale of Two Funds
Ziidi, a partnership with Standard Investment Bank, ALA Capital Limited, and Sanlam Investments East Africa Limited, offers seamless M-PESA integration, a KES 100 entry point, and instant withdrawals—hitting KES 6 billion in under three months. Mali, once a star with KES 3.1 billion ($24 million) in assets by September 2024 (Kenya’s 17th-largest collective investment scheme), generated KES 11.6 million ($89,000) for Safaricom in H1 2024. But since late December, Mali’s been a ghost—technical failures blocked withdrawals and new sign-ups, while Ziidi hums along. Both linger on the M-PESA app, but Mali’s relegated to the shadows.
Posts on X highlight the rift: Ziidi’s 7.31% interest rate pales next to Mali’s 11.13% (March 4 data), prompting cries of “lazy returns” and “why still Ziidi?” Speculation swirls that Safaricom’s phasing Mali out, fueled by Genghis Capital’s December 2024 claims of “business fraud”—alleging Safaricom migrated Mali users to Ziidi without consent and engineered a liquidity crisis to trigger withdrawals. Neither party’s talking; multiple outreach attempts to Safaricom and Genghis went unanswered.
The Legal and Technical Mess
Genghis’s accusations paint a grim picture: Safaricom stalled Mali’s growth—hit by ownership disputes—while prepping Ziidi with new partners. December 2024-January 2025 saw Mali users locked out, with some forcibly shifted to Ziidi via SMS: “You will now access your investments on the Ziidi App.” If true, this could breach Kenya’s Data Protection Act, risking fines or CMA scrutiny. Safaricom’s countered (per X posts) that Mali’s platform had “technical issues” needing fixes for trust—yet silence reigns as Ziidi thrives.
Kenya’s MMF Boom Sets the Stage
Kenya’s investment funds are red-hot—assets under management jumped 13% to KES 254 billion ($1.9 billion) by June 2024, per CMA data. MMFs dominate with KES 171.2 billion ($1.3 billion), or 67.4% of the pie, dwarfing fixed-income and equity funds. Safaricom’s M-PESA, serving 30 million users and moving KES 1.5 trillion monthly, is a goldmine for tapping this growth. Mali’s KES 3.1 billion haul showed promise; Ziidi’s $46 million sprint suggests even bigger potential—if it can dodge Mali’s fallout.
What’s Next for Safaricom in 2025?
Safaricom’s tight-lipped stance fuels unease. Is Mali a casualty of infighting, or a planned pivot? Ziidi’s 1 million users signal M-PESA’s FinTech clout, but Genghis’s legal threats—and Mali’s 11% + returns—cast a shadow. With Tesla’s skid, Broadcom’s AI chip pop, and Trump’s Bitcoin reserve rocking global markets, Kenya’s FinTech drama feels local yet seismic. Will Ziidi hit Mali’s KES 3.1 billion mark by mid-year, or will regulatory blowback stall Safaricom’s MMF empire? Today’s briefing dodged the Mali question—watch for CMA moves or court filings to break the silence.
