Genghis Capital, a Kenyan funding financial institution, has accused Safaricom of “enterprise fraud” over the launch of a competing cash market fund, Ziidi, which the telco rolled out in November 2024. The dispute centres on Safaricom’s alleged determination to stall the rollout of Mali, a fund launched in partnership with Genghis in 2020, and as an alternative register the rival Ziidi product, authorised by Kenya’s Capital Markets Authority (CMA) on November 27. 

In a letter seen by TechCabal, Genghis Capital accused Safaricom of breaching an settlement, claiming the telco’s actions amounted to “enterprise fraud.” The letter, dated December 3, 2024, asserts that Safaricom delayed the launch of Mali whereas working with different third events to register Ziidi, violating the spirit of the 2019 partnership. 

Safaricom defended its actions in a December 6 response, citing technical points with the Mali platform. “As you might be conscious, a bigger fund with these challenges wouldn’t solely expose Safaricom to reputational dangers, but it surely might additionally doubtlessly end in adversarial regulatory and authorized motion for Safaricom and Genghis,” stated an excerpt from Safaricom’s letter. 

Along with the allegations of enterprise fraud, Genghis additionally accused Safaricom of breaching privateness legal guidelines. The financial institution claims the telco has been migrating prospects from Mali to Ziindi via the M-Pesa app with out their consent, a breach of information safety rules. 

In September 2024, the CMA ranked Mali because the seventeenth-largest collective funding scheme in Kenya, with belongings totalling $23.9 million (KES3.1 billion). The fund generated $89,748 (KES11.6 million) in income for Safaricom within the first half of 2024. 

The dispute highlights the rising competitors in Kenya’s wealth administration and digital finance sectors because the telco seeks to increase its funding choices via M-Pesa.