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| Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa |
Safaricom customers defaulting on M-Shwari loans taken on old lines could have their current savings account balance frozen. Safaricom CEO Peter Ndegwa speaking at a past event. Why Safaricom freeze M-Shwari balance This followed an incident where a man took to social protesting after the telecommunications firm blocked his M-Shwari savings balance.The man shared a screenshot of the message, giving him seven-day ultimatum to clear the loan on his old line or his M-Shwari savings of KSh 2299.79 be used to clear the loan. “Dear Customer, we have placed a lock of KSh 2,299.79 on your M-Shwari Savings Account owing to a defaulted M-Shwari loan of KSh 2,299.79. The loan was taken on 2019-11-25 from your old line 254712653641. We wish to issue you a seven-day notice to settle the loan, otherwise we shall utilize the locked funds to repay the loan,” read the SMS in part. How Safaricom, NCBA recover M-Shwari loans Speaking exclusively to TUKO.co.ke, the company noted that NCBA bank took the initiative to recover defaulted M-Shwari loans from old SIM cards. “The bank is in the process of recovering defaulted Mshwari loans from old lines. Kindly repay, or the bank will recover the money within 7 days,” said Safaricom Customer Care. Safaricom assured that once the customer repays the loan on the stipulated time, his M-Shwari savings will be unfreezed. The company has been taking various measures to recover bad loan on its financial products. Fuliza loan payment In May 2024, Safaricom took steps to introduce Lipa Fuliza na Bonga points. Speaking exclusively to TUKO.co.ke, Safaricom revealed that the service is only available to customers whose Fuliza loan is past 45 days past repayment. The company explained that users will require a minimum of 100 Bonga points to access the service.
by Wycliffe Musalia