Lipa Fuliza Na Bonga: Safaricom Introduces Payment Of M-Pesa Overdraft Facility Using Loyalty Points

• In December 2023, Safaricom denied media reports that it was accepting payment of Fuliza loan using Bonga points, saying no such avenues were in place
• The leading telecommunications firm in Kenya 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

TUKO.co.ke journalist Wycliffe Musalia brings over five years of experience in financial, business, and technology reporting, offering deep insights into Kenyan and global economic trends.

Safaricom customers subscribed to the M-Pesa overdraft facility Fuliza can now repay the loan using Bonga points.

The leading telecommunications firm introduced the Lipa na Bonga points facility after dismissing the claims in December 2023.

How to pay Fuliza loan using Bonga points

Speaking exclusively with TUKO.co.ke, Safaricom noted that the service is only available to Fuliza subscribers whose loan is 45 days past repayment.

"Yes, you can repay your Fuliza loan under Lipa Fuliza na Bonga points... dial *126#OK>Lipa Fuliza and follow the prompts. This is possible if the outstanding Fuliza is older than 45 days," said Safaricom in response to TUKO.co.ke.

This followed a notification sent to customers requesting them to repay Fuliza using the royalty points.

The telco's message urged subscribers to get extra Bonga points from people close to repay the loan.

"Request for Bonga points from those close to you and repay Fuliza," read the message sent to customers in part.

How many Bonga points can repay Fuliza loan?

Safaricom explained that users will require a minimum of 100 Bonga points to access the service.

The loan is repaid at a rate of five Bonga points for KSh 1, meaning 100 points repays KSh 20 Fuliza.

"You must have a minimum of 100 Bonga points. The conversion rate is KSh 0.02 or KSh 1 = 5 Bonga points," Safaricom added.

If a subscriber needs to repay KSh 500 Fuliza, he or she will need around 2,500 Bonga points.

Payment of Fuliza loan

Fuliza, an M-Pesa overdraft facility, is repaid once a subscriber immediately tops up the M-Pesa account.

However, Safaricom customer Engineer Amos recently raised concerns over the payment, saying his friend's Fuliza debt of KSh 500 is yet to be repaid, yet he makes prompt deposits.

Safaricom explained that such situations are rare and can only occur once a customer has received Hustler Fund within the last 24 hours.

Proofreading by Otukho Jackson, a multimedia journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke