M-PESA Ratiba – a Safaricom Standing Order Payment Feature

Safaricom just introduced the M-PESA Ratiba, a feature that changes how individual M-PESA users can operate on recurrent expenditure. The M-PESA Ratiba is a feature that allows M-PESA registered customers to set up recurring (standing order) payments from their M-PESA account to other M-PESA customers or a Lipa na M-PESA shortcode. This feature can be used for services such as paying rent, utility bills, or school fees, as shared on the feature’s page.

The M-PESA Ratiba is available to all M-PESA users who intend to use this feature. They can set up the standing order feature which can be accessed through the M-PESA USSD short code *334# or the M-PESA app. The feature allows individuals to pay bills to personal M-PESA accounts. It can also be used to settle Lipa na M-PESA through Paybill, Buy Goods, and Business till numbers.

Benefits of the M-PESA Ratiba Service

The M-PESA Ratiba service allows the following.

1. Fairly easy, quick, and transparent setup process.
2. Automate as many recurring transfers and payments as you wish, and free up time in your day and space in your lists of obligations to remember.
3. Make timely payments and avoid penalties and embarrassments from delinquent payments.
4. Service is available from all types of handsets, whether it is a feature or smartphone.
5. Incur no penalties for cancelled or failed standing order transfers that may occur due to insufficient balance.
6. Set how long the standing order is in place for, and pause/revoke the order, whenever you wish at no extra fee.

Features of M-PESA Ratiba

The two channels will offer the following services:

• Opting into the Ratiba service
• Creating diverse types of recurring payment transactions by defining the transaction type (Paybill / Buy Goods / Send money), amount, due date, time of payment, recurrence (daily, monthly, weekly)
• To confirm the created subscription/bill before committing to save it.
• Authentication using the M-PESA PIN to save the details of the created subscription/bill.
• Delete existing subscriptions.
• View of the total set budget amount against the M-PESA balance, existing subscriptions, and their due dates and transactions history