Sending money between Kenyan bank accounts could soon require nothing more than a phone number or national ID, as PesaLink moves to simplify one of the more cumbersome parts of interbank transfers.
PesaLink, the real time payment network operated on behalf of the Kenya Bankers Association, already lets customers link a phone number to their bank account so senders can skip typing out account numbers. Now the company is upgrading that existing account mapping capability as PesaLink ID, designed to allow users to send money using simpler identifiers.
PesaLink CEO Kituku Kirika said the change addresses a persistent obstacle to wider adoption of bank-based instant payments: traditional payment credentials are too complex for everyday users, causing transfers to lag. Bank transfers typically require multiple pieces of information, including an account number, bank name and sometimes branch details, creating friction for person toperson payments and business disbursements.
The service will initially rely on the mobile number to account mapping PesaLink already operates, with plans to eventually expand to other identifiers such as email addresses and national ID numbers.
The move reflects a broader interoperability push. PesaLink’s ecosystem now includes more non bank participants than banks, and Kirika noted that East Africa’s instant payments market is largely mobile money led, unlike more bank-led markets such as Nigeria. PesaLink is also serving as the last mile partner in Kenya for the Pan African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), reducing the need for multiple direct integrations with local banks, with the partnership starting with cross-border remittances into Kenya and potential expansion to outbound payments.
Phone number based transfers are not entirely new to PesaLink users. The platform already allows customers to send money directly to a recipient’s bank account by simply using their mobile phone number, with transfers ranging from as little as KSh 10 up to KSh 999,999 processed instantly. To use this feature, customers currently need to select Link Your Phone on the PesaLink menu and choose the account they want to link from their list of accounts.
What PesaLink ID promises is a more formalized, expanded version of this system one that could eventually let a national ID number substitute for a bank account number entirely, further narrowing the gap between traditional bank transfers and the simplicity Kenyans have grown used to with mobile money platforms like M-Pesa.
No firm rollout date for the ID and email based expansion has been announced. For now, the phone number option remains PesaLink’s most accessible alternative to entering full account details, available across mobile banking, USSD, ATM, internet banking, and agency banking channels at participating banks.
