Build an app like M-Pesa, under your own brand
By SendPay Business · · 3 min read
M-Pesa was launched by Safaricom in Kenya in 2007 and made paying, sending and saving by phone normal for millions of people, with agents in shops across the country to pay money in and out. It started as somebody's idea, like every money app. Here's what you can learn from it, and how to launch your own mobile money wallet under your own name, with your own fees.
What M-Pesa got right
It went where people already were, their phones and the corner shop, instead of asking them to visit a bank branch. Build around the places your users already go.
Where a new brand can win
You won't out-spend M-Pesa. You win on focus: one community, one language, one type of customer or one corridor that a big app treats as an afterthought. Build the app those people would have designed for themselves, and they'll bring the next users with them.
What you can launch under your own brand
A mobile money wallet is one of the templates, alongside payment links for invoices, a marketplace that pays its sellers and a membership platform. Each one carries your name, your colours and your domain, and the fee on every payment is yours to set.
How it works, in a few clicks
Pick the template closest to your idea, type your platform name and preview every page before you pay.
- Pick a template.
- Name it and choose your colours. The site changes as you type.
- Preview the finished platform, page by page.
- Verify with a selfie and pay your invoice.
- Go live on your own domain within 24 hours and invite your first users.
Permissions: the honest part
The accounts, cards and payments behind your platform are powered by licensed partners. Depending on what your platform does and who it serves, you may also need your own registration in Kenya. We tell you in writing which permissions apply to your platform before you pay, and introduce specialists who handle them. We are not licensed advisers and don't guarantee outcomes.
Build it
Create your own financial platform.
Pick a template, name it, brand it, preview every page before you pay. Your brand, your users, your fees.
Build my platform →Questions people ask
Is SendPay Business connected to M-Pesa?
No. We name M-Pesa only to describe it. SendPay Business is an independent technology company, not a bank.
Can I copy M-Pesa's name or look?
No. Their name, logo and colours belong to them. Build your own brand with its own name: the free name generator gives you ideas and opens your favourite straight in the builder.
Payment app name generator →Can I call it a bank?
In most countries, "bank" is a protected word you can only use with a banking licence. Call it an account, a wallet, an app or a platform.
How much could my platform earn?
It depends on how many users you have, how much they move and the fee you set. Put your own numbers into the free calculator.
Platform earnings calculator →Who else would I compete with in Kenya?
The country guide names the biggest banks and money apps in Kenya, and how a new brand can take them on.
Read the country guide →Is there a step-by-step plan I can follow?
Yes. The free launch checklist takes you from picking your people and naming your app to setting fees, going live and winning your first ten customers. Tick each step off as you go.
Digital bank app launch checklist →How do I start?
Pick a template, name it and preview every page before you pay. Your platform can be live on your own domain within 24 hours of confirmation.
Build my platform →Read next
This guide is general information, not legal or financial advice. SendPay Business is a technology company, not a bank, and does not take deposits; regulated services on the platforms are provided by licensed partners. PayPal, Patreon and Substack are named as reference points only and are not affiliated with SendPay Business.