Airtel Money Kenya has appointed Michael Bonke as its Acting Managing Director, ushering in a new leadership chapter as the company unveiled Bizna Wallet, a dedicated digital wallet designed to help Kenya’s small businesses better manage their finances while accelerating digital financial inclusion.
Bonke assumes the leadership of Airtel Money Kenya with more than 15 years of experience in the telecommunications and fintech sectors, having spent nearly a decade at Airtel Money in leadership roles across sales, business development and marketing. During his tenure, he has helped drive customer growth, digital transformation and strategic partnerships as Airtel Money expands its footprint in Kenya’s competitive mobile money market.
His first major announcement as Acting Managing Director is the launch of Bizna Wallet, a solution aimed at micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) seeking a simpler and more secure way to manage business finances.
The launch comes as Kenya’s SMEs continue to embrace digital payments. According to the Mastercard SME Confidence Index, 95% of SMEs now accept mobile payments, highlighting growing demand for financial services that extend beyond simply receiving payments.
Speaking during the launch, Bonke said the new wallet addresses a longstanding challenge facing many entrepreneurs who use personal mobile money accounts to run their businesses.
“Small businesses are at the heart of Kenya’s economy, yet many entrepreneurs still rely on personal wallets to manage business finances. Airtel Money Bizna Wallet is designed for kiosk owners, market traders, boda boda riders, matatu operators and other micro-businesses to enable them to separate business income from personal finances, monitor their daily sales, access mini statements, receive payments across mobile money networks and protect business payments from unauthorized reversals, giving entrepreneurs greater visibility over their cash flow and more stable business operations. Our goal is to provide solutions that help businesses operate more efficiently while making digital financial services more accessible and rewarding,” said Bonke.
Bizna Wallet enables businesses to separate business income from personal finances, monitor daily sales, access mini statements and manage cash flow more efficiently. The wallet also allows merchants to receive payments across mobile money networks while introducing protection against unauthorized payment reversals, providing greater security for business transactions.
The solution is targeted at Kenya’s vast informal and SME sector, including kiosk owners, market traders, boda boda riders, matatu operators and other entrepreneurs who depend on mobile money to run their day-to-day operations.
Alongside the launch of Bizna Wallet, Airtel Money also expanded its Rudishiwa cashback programme to all Airtel Money customers.
Under the new offer, customers will receive 50% cashback on eligible transactions, including paybill payments, transfers to other mobile money networks, bank-to-wallet transfers and wallet-to-bank transfers. Unlike the company’s previous airtime rewards, the cashback is credited as real cash into a dedicated Cashback Wallet, allowing customers to transfer the rewards directly into their main Airtel Money wallet.
“As Kenya’s digital economy continues to grow, so do the needs of businesses and consumers. At Airtel Money, we are continuously investing in technology, expanding our reach and developing innovative solutions that make financial services simpler, more secure and more relevant for our customers. This is why we have introduced cashback rewards to Airtel Money users. Initially, we had airtime rewards, and now we have introduced real cash rewards that go into your cashback wallet for every eligible transaction. Customers can transfer the cash from the cashback wallet into the main Airtel Money wallet,” Bonke added.
The cashback programme is available to all registered Airtel Money customers in Kenya who complete qualifying transactions of KES 101 or more, with no opt-in required. Rewards are credited instantly and are accessible through both the My Airtel App and the *USSD 334# platform.
The appointment of Bonke and the launch of Bizna Wallet signal Airtel Money’s continued push to strengthen its position in Kenya’s digital financial services market. By combining dedicated financial tools for SMEs with cashback incentives for consumers, the company is seeking to deepen financial inclusion, expand merchant adoption and grow its digital payments ecosystem as Kenya’s cashless economy continues to evolve.