Safaricom and Gulfcap Investment Bank (GCIB) have launched the Ziidi Shari'ah Money Market Fund, which lets M-PSA customers invest in a way that follows Shari'ah principles.
Individuals and businesses can start investing with KES100 (about $0.77), with top-ups from KES10.
Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa said the product is meant to widen financial inclusion by meeting the varied needs of the company's customers.
The fund opens Shari'ah-compliant investing to Safaricom's more than 41 million M-PESA customers; its conventional Ziidi Money Market Fund, by comparison, had attracted about two million customers.
"Part of driving financial inclusion is about making financial services relevant to the different needs and circumstances of our customers. With Ziidi Shari'ah, we are making investing simple, affordable and accessible, while providing an option that aligns with the values that guide our customers' lives," Ndegwa said.
The Capital Markets Authority regulates the fund, which was approved in 2025.
GCIB's Shari'ah Supervisory Board oversees how it invests. The fund runs independently of Safaricom's conventional Ziidi Money Market Fund.
GCIB CEO Saud Shahbal said putting the fund on M-PESA gives Muslims and other investors who prefer ethical products a way to grow their savings in line with their values.
"The fund invests exclusively in short-term, highly liquid instruments in Shari'ah-compliant banks. This preserves capital and daily liquidity, while ensuring returns are free of interest (riba) and are earned only from ethical, permissible activities," Shahbal said.
Customers can track their daily profit and deposit into their Ziidi Shari'ah accounts for free. They can also withdraw to their M-PESA wallets at no cost. A lock feature lets them set money aside, which encourages disciplined investing and cuts down on unplanned withdrawals.
There is no maximum investment limit, but standard M-PESA transaction limits apply: a KES500 000 (about $3 870) daily cap and a KES250 000 (about $1 935) cap per transaction.
The launch comes as the conventional Ziidi fund keeps growing. Its assets under management more than doubled to KES18.7 billion (about $145 million) in the year to March 2026.
Safaricom said Ziidi Shari'ah reinforces M-PESA's shift from a payments and transfers platform into a full financial services ecosystem where customers can save, invest and build wealth.
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