Safaricom PLC's newly launched money market fund, Ziidi, has been hit by a major service outage, sparking panic among thousands of customers unable to access their funds.
The disruption on the afternoon of Sunday, November 16, has forced Kenyans to flood social media platforms with complaints, decrying inability to access their investment.
The outage, which has prevented users from accessing their funds, is sparking widespread frustration. Ziidi MMF, is integrated within the M-Pesa platform and has millions of active users who rely on it for savings.
Julisha.co.ke has confirmed that users who tried to access the service through their M-Pesa wallets were met with a simple, " Error, Ziidi is unable to process your request at this time, try again later".
The outage rekindled long-standing concerns about the reliability of mobile money-linked savings. For some Kenyans, Ziidi is not just a convenience but their main banking platform — used to store savings for emergency funds - as they profit.
Analysts say the disruption underscores the need for redundancy systems to ensure such outages are minimised.
Meawhile, the outage comes in the wake of remarkable growth of the platform.
Ziidi MMF is a unit trust product that allows customers to earn daily interest by investing funds directly from their M-PESA wallets. Unlike traditional investment options that often require extensive paperwork and high entry barriers, Ziidi MMF offers a seamless and user-friendly alternative that aligns with Safaricom’s mission to promote financial inclusion.
While there is no maximum investment cap, the platform adheres to the daily M-PESA transaction limit of Sh500,000 and a per-transaction limit of Sh250,000. This accessibility makes it ideal for individuals across various income levels, from small-scale investors to high-net-worth individuals.
The fund, which primarily focuses its investments on fixed deposits, government securities, and corporate bonds, continues to deliver strong returns for its investors.
For the half-year period ending June 30, 2025, the fund reported a total investment income of KSh 354,355,506 supported by a diversified investment strategy.
Interest income from fixed deposits stood at KSh 194,313,057, followed by KSh 86,344,111 from government securities and KSh 73,340,411 from call deposits.
Total expenses stood at KSh 81,276,498, including management fees of KSh 77,906,382, trustee fees of KSh 2,224,744, and custody fees of KSh 2,746,372. These expenses represent the operational costs of managing and maintaining the fund’s assets.
After accounting for operating expenses, the Ziidi Money Market Fund posted a surplus of KES 273,079,008 attributable to unit holders. The surplus, which is an indicator of the fund's financial health, highlights the fund's potential for long-term value creation and its ability to generate significant returns for investors.
The Ziidi Money Market Fund also saw notable growth in its asset base. As of June 30, 2025, the fund’s total assets stood at KSh 10,684,994,513. Non-current assets, which include fixed deposits, government securities, and corporate bonds, amounted to KSh 5,187,948,030 while current assets, including call deposits and cash balances, totalled KSh 5,497,046,483.
Notably, the total fund’s unitholder balances rose to KSh 10,594,593,687, reflecting strong investor confidence and growing participation in the market.
One of the standout features of Ziidi is its low entry barrier, allowing individuals to start investing with as little as KES 100. This accessibility empowers a diverse range of investors, including those who may have previously been excluded from traditional investment avenues.
Apart from today's outage, when the system is functional, Investors can make deposits and withdrawals instantly through their M-Pesa wallets. This flexibility is crucial for users who may need quick access to their funds while still wanting to grow their savings.
Managed by Safaricom, in collaboration with reputable firms Standard Investment Bank, ALA Capital Limited, and Sanlam Investments East Africa Limited, Ziidi MMF operates under strict regulations set forth by the CMA, ensuring transparency and security for investors.
Investors earn interest on their deposits daily, which is credited directly to their Ziidi wallets. This feature not only incentivizes saving but also allows users to see their investments grow in real-time.
Since its launch in December last year, 1.15 Million Kenyans have opted into the Ziidi MMF, nearly half of Kenya's unit trust investors, demonstrating a robust appetite for investment products that are both accessible and user-friendly. The fund’s rapid growth reflects a broader trend towards financial inclusion and increased digital literacy among Kenyans.
With over 50 million M-Pesa users in Kenya, Ziidi MMF taps into a vast market of potential investors who may lack access to traditional banking services. By lowering barriers to entry and providing an intuitive platform for investment, Safaricom is promoting financial inclusion across various demographics.
Meanwhile, while the progress is commendable, the giant telecommunications company has in recent weeks faced backlash for outages in its mobile money services.
Financial analysts say such incidents highlight the risks of over-reliance on digital financial services without sufficient consumer protection mechanisms. “When people cannot access their money, even for a few hours, it directly affects food security, transport, and health emergencies,” one Nairobi-based economist told Julisha.Co.Ke
As digital banking grows, analysts say outages like these could push regulators to demand stricter service-level guarantees from telcos and partner banks to safeguard consumers.
Safaricom has yet to issue a statement or comment on the cause of the Ziidi MMF outage, at the time of this publication.
