Kenya saw a reduction in the number of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) last year as more customers shifted from ATMs and physical bank branches to internet and mobile banking, according to a new report by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK).
The *Financial Sector Stability Report 2023*, released on Thursday, revealed that the number of ATMs in Kenya dropped from 2,301 in December 2022 to 2,082 by December 2023. The CBK noted that around 809,000 new mobile money users were registered in the twelve months leading up to December 2023.
As of December 2023, mobile money providers had a total active 30-day customer base of 31.4 million, though this marked a decline from 32.9 million in December 2022. Mobile money continues to dominate Kenya’s retail payments system. Other transaction methods include credit and debit cards, point of sale (POS) devices, and the Automated Clearing House (ACH), which supports electronic funds transfers.
The number of cards and POS terminals, such as those used by retail stores, saw a slight increase in 2023, according to the CBK.
In response to the growing use of mobile money for retail payments, the CBK raised mobile money transaction limits and wallet sizes last year. The transaction limit was increased from KSh.70,000 to KSh.150,000, with a daily transaction limit and wallet size later raised to KSh.300,000.
As a result, payment service providers, including mobile money, Pesalink, cards, cheques, and electronic funds transfers, raised the maximum daily mobile money transaction limit to KSh.250,000. The size of the mobile money wallet was also increased from KSh.300,000 to a maximum of KSh.500,000.
