Safaricom has started an automated exercise to refund archived M-Pesa balances belonging to customers who previously used dormant or recycled mobile numbers.Thousands of customers across Kenya have reported receiving unexpected deposits, with some refunds amounting to several thousand shillings.

The telecom company clarified that these funds are not promotional payments or system errors, but money that remained in old M-Pesa accounts linked to inactive lines previously registered under the same national ID.

Once the system identifies that the original owner has an active Safaricom line registered using the same identification document, the archived balance is automatically transferred to their current M-Pesa account.

The refunds sparked widespread discussion on social media after customers received SMS notifications indicating that the money had come from old inactive numbers.

Safaricom explained that although mobile numbers are recycled after remaining inactive for more than six months, the M-Pesa balances are kept separately and securely under the customer's identification details rather than being transferred with the recycled number.The company also assured customers that receiving these refunds does not mean their current lines are at risk of suspension or deactivation.Under Safaricom's M-Pesa terms and conditions, customers retain ownership of their funds even after their mobile numbers are recycled.

However, if the money remains unclaimed for more than two years, it is transferred to the Unclaimed Financial Assets Authority (UFAA) in line with Kenyan law, where it can still be claimed by the rightful owner.

The initiative demonstrates a proactive approach to protecting customer funds by automatically returning eligible balances instead of requiring customers to submit manual recovery requests.