M-PESA Tanzania Tap to Pay Lets Customers Pay by Phone When Abroad

M-PESA Africa has won two awards at the Vodacom Group CEO Awards for Tap to Pay, its partnership with Vodacom Tanzania and Visa. The service lets M-PESA Super App customers in Tanzania pay directly from their M-PESA accounts when they travel internationally, using their mobile phone instead of a physical card.

Key facts

• What won: two Vodacom Group CEO Awards for the Tap to Pay partnership between M-PESA Africa, Vodacom Tanzania and Visa
• The technology: built around the M-PESA Visa Virtual Card
• Who can use it: M-PESA Super App customers in Tanzania
• Where it works: at Visa-accepting point-of-sale terminals with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology abroad
• Individual award: Wangeci Thumbi, Senior Portfolio Manager, for work on the M-PESA ecosystem

What does Tap to Pay do?

The solution allows customers to make contactless payments using their mobile phones at Visa-accepting point-of-sale terminals abroad. Those terminals must be equipped with Near Field Communication (NFC) technology, the short-range wireless system used for contactless payments.

Payments are taken directly from the customer's M-PESA account while they are outside Tanzania. M-PESA Africa described the solution as another first for the mobile money sector and highlighted its role in expanding digital payments across international markets.

Who is affected?

The feature is aimed at M-PESA Super App customers in Tanzania who travel internationally. The source does not state which destination countries are covered, what fees or transaction limits apply, or when the service first became available.

Who else was recognised?

The awards also covered individual contributions within the M-PESA ecosystem. Wangeci Thumbi, Senior Portfolio Manager, received an individual award for her leadership in accelerating M-PESA ecosystem growth in Kenya and Mozambique.

Her recognised work included driving cross-market collaboration on merchant best practices and knowledge sharing, and establishing a unified investment framework across the Vodacom Group.

What this means for travellers

M-PESA Super App customers in Tanzania can rely on their phones to pay at Visa-accepting contactless terminals while abroad, rather than carrying a physical Visa card. Travellers using the service should confirm that a terminal accepts Visa and supports NFC before attempting to pay, since the source describes both as requirements.

No details on fees, transaction limits, covered destination countries or further rollout plans were given.