Kenya records ATM decline as mobile, internet banking rise: CBK

Kenya recorded a decrease in the number of Automated Teller Machines (ATMs) last year as customers shifted from ATM and physical bank branches to Internet and mobile banking, a new Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) report shows.

The lender’s Financial Sector Stability Report 2023 released on Thursday shows that the number of ATMs in Kenya went from 2,301 in December 2022 to 2,082 last December.

CBK says about 809,000 new mobile money users were registered in the twelve months to December 2023.

As of December 2023, mobile money providers had a total active 30-day customer base of 31.4 million customers, although this was a decline from 32.9 million in December 2022.

Mobile money dominates Kenya’s retail payments system. The other transaction methods alongside ATMs include credit and debit cards, point of sale (POS) devices, and the Automated Clearing House (ACH) which facilitates electronic funds transfers.

The number of cards and POS terminals like those used by retail stores increased slightly in 2023, CBK said.

Due to the increased use of mobile money services for retail payments, the CBK last year raised the limits for mobile money transactions and the size of the mobile money wallet.

The limits increased from the initial mobile money transactions of KSh.70,000 to KSh.150,000, and later a daily limit for transactions and wallet size of Ksh.300,000.

As a result, payment service providers like mobile money, Pesalink, cards, cheques, and electronic funds transfers increased the daily mobile money transaction limit from Ksh.150,000 to a maximum of Ksh.250,000.

Similarly, the size of the mobile money wallet was increased from Ksh.300,000 to a maximum of Ksh.500,000.