M-Pesa Pochi la Biashara: Registration, Charges, Limit and How to Withdraw

Pochi la Biashara lets you take business payments on your own M-Pesa line, without a till. You join by dialling *334#, and it takes a couple of minutes.

For now, it's cheap for your customers: paying you is free up to KES 200, and capped at KES 50 above KES 2,500, under a temporary discount. That discount is due to end soon. Here's how to join, the limits and how to get your money out.

What is Pochi la Biashara?

Pochi la Biashara, "business pocket" in Swahili, is Safaricom's wallet for traders who don't want the hassle of a formal Buy Goods till: kiosk owners, mama mbogas, boda boda riders, secondhand clothes sellers, hairdressers, the works. It's a separate wallet that sits alongside your personal M-Pesa account on the same line, so business cash doesn't get mixed into your airtime and grocery money, according to Safaricom's own Pochi la Biashara product page.

What makes it different from a Buy Goods till:

• No paperwork, no KRA PIN. It runs on your existing, already-verified M-Pesa line, and Safaricom doesn't ask for business registration.
• Customers pay your number, not a till number. No hunting for a sticker or asking the vendor to repeat a till digit by digit.
• You can withdraw straight from Pochi at an agent, without first moving the money into your main M-Pesa balance.
• You earn a 5% commission when you sell airtime out of your Pochi balance to customers.
• A payment can't be reversed without your agreement. More on that below.

How do I register for Pochi la Biashara?

You need an active, registered M-Pesa line. Registration itself is free and instant:

1. Dial *334# on the phone the M-Pesa line is registered to.
2. Select Pochi La Biashara.
3. Select Join Pochi and accept the terms and conditions.
4. Choose your business category from the menu (this is what customers see when they pay).
5. Confirm with your M-Pesa PIN. You'll get an SMS once you're opted in, and your PIN is what approves every Pochi transaction afterwards.

No KRA PIN, ID copy or trip to a Safaricom shop needed, straight from Safaricom's product page above. If you later want to stop using it, opting out moves whatever's sitting in your Pochi wallet into your main M-Pesa account instantly.

How much does Pochi la Biashara charge?

This part depends on dates. Safaricom's current M-Pesa tariff page (last updated 4 August 2026) lists a special, discounted scale for customers paying a Pochi la Biashara merchant, running "for 3 months from 1st August 2026". So it was due to end around the end of October or the very start of November 2026:

Two things worth knowing that most "Pochi charges" posts skip:

1. It's the customer who pays this fee, not you. The tariff table is headed the same way as the ordinary person-to-person transfer table, "customer charges", and there's no separate merchant-side deduction listed for receiving a Pochi payment. Compare that with a Buy Goods till, where Safaricom takes a 0.55% cut out of what you receive once a single payment passes KES 500. With Pochi, what the customer pays is, as far as the published tariff shows, what lands in your wallet.
2. The KES 50 cap is new. Before this discount, the top Pochi band matched the ordinary transfer rate of KES 108. Several outlets, including the Standard, reported Safaricom made the cut after pressure from the Central Bank of Kenya and competition from Airtel's rival Bizna Wallet, which doesn't charge customers at all.

Because the offer is ending, don't tell customers these are permanent prices. Safaricom hadn't published a Pochi rate for after the offer as of 24 October 2026, so check the tariff page above, or our M-Pesa charges calculator, before you rely on it. For every other kind of M-Pesa payment (sending, withdrawing, Buy Goods), see our full 2026 M-Pesa charges guide.

What's the Pochi la Biashara transaction limit?

Safaricom hasn't published a Pochi-specific limit that's higher or lower than the ordinary M-Pesa line it rides on. The limits that apply, per the same tariff page, are the standard ones for your M-Pesa line as a whole:

• Maximum M-Pesa account balance: KES 500,000
• Maximum daily transaction value: KES 500,000
• Maximum amount per transaction: KES 250,000
• Minimum agent withdrawal: KES 50

In practice, that means a single big customer payment can't exceed KES 250,000, and your combined Pochi-plus-personal activity in a day can't exceed KES 500,000. If you're running a business that regularly moves more than that in a day, you'll hit the ceiling before you hit anything Pochi-specific, and you're better off with a Business Till or Paybill, which carry their own, separate limits.

How do I withdraw money from Pochi la Biashara?

This is one of Pochi's real advantages over a Buy Goods till: you can cash out directly from the Pochi wallet at any M-Pesa agent, without first sending it to your personal M-Pesa account. At the agent counter:

1. Tell the agent you're withdrawing from Pochi la Biashara (or dial *334# yourself and select the withdraw option).
2. Enter the amount and confirm with your M-Pesa PIN.
3. The agent charge is the standard M-Pesa agent withdrawal rate. Safaricom's product page says Pochi follows ordinary customer M-Pesa rates, and the tariff page has no separate Pochi withdrawal scale.

A few reference points from that same tariff table, for amounts traders commonly cash out:

Run any other amount through our free M-Pesa fee calculator rather than guessing. If you'd rather move the money into your main wallet first (say, to pay a supplier by Paybill) the same *334# menu has a "move money to M-Pesa" option, free of any Pochi-specific transfer fee as far as the published tariff shows.

Can I pay other businesses from my Pochi account?

Yes. This is the "Lipa Na Pochi" option on the *334# menu, confirmed on Safaricom's product page. It lets you pay another business's Paybill or Buy Goods till straight from your Pochi balance, instead of moving the money to your personal wallet first. That's useful if you buy most of your stock from suppliers who take M-Pesa and want to keep business money separate all the way through.

How do I reverse money sent to the wrong Pochi la Biashara number?

Carefully, and don't expect the usual trick to work. Safaricom's Pochi la Biashara page says plainly: "Payment once received cannot be reversed without the approval of the business owner."

That rules out the fast, self-service fix that works for an ordinary phone-to-phone transfer, where you forward the confirmation SMS to 456 within 24 hours. Pochi, like a Paybill or Till, is a business account, and 456 self-reversal only works for personal transfers and airtime you bought for yourself. Our full guide to reversing M-Pesa sent to the wrong number, paybill or till covers exactly which process applies to which mistake.

For a wrong Pochi payment, your real options are:

1. Contact the trader directly if you know them, and ask for a refund.
2. Call Safaricom Customer Care on 100 (prepaid) or 200 (postpaid). They'll reach out to the Pochi owner and ask them to approve a reversal.
3. If the owner refuses, Safaricom can't force the money back. At that point it becomes a police matter if the amount is significant.

Double-check the number before you confirm a Pochi payment. There's no undo button once the merchant decides to keep the money.

Pochi la Biashara vs Buy Goods till: which should you use?

If you trade on your own and want the simplest setup while keeping every shilling customers pay, Pochi la Biashara wins, especially while the offer lasts. If you run a shop with staff, or want a number that isn't your personal line, a Buy Goods till looks more professional, even though Safaricom takes a small cut of bigger sales. Either way, keep your M-Pesa statement so you can see what's coming in. Our guide to getting your M-Pesa statement covers the app, USSD and Excel options, and our M-Pesa statement analyzer works out your real income, after Fuliza and reversals, from the statement you upload.

Scams and mistakes to avoid

• Don't quote the free-up-to-KES-200 rate as permanent. It's a promotion with an end date. Check the live tariff before you tell customers "it's free" on anything near that threshold.
• A Pochi number looks exactly like a personal phone number. That's handy for you, but it also means scammers sometimes register Pochi wallets just to collect "deposit" scam payments, because there's no check on the business name beyond the category chosen. Check who you're paying, as you would before sending to any unfamiliar number.
• Opting out moves your balance instantly, but it also kills Lipa Na Pochi. Don't opt out mid-transaction or while you're owed a pending refund from a customer dispute.
• Mixing Pochi and personal spending defeats the entire point. Treat withdrawals from Pochi as owner's draw, not pocket change, if you want to see whether the business is profitable.

Running short on stock money? See how Fuliza ya Pochi works and what it costs.

Frequently asked questions

Does Pochi la Biashara need a KRA PIN or business registration?

No. It runs on your personal, already-registered M-Pesa line, so Safaricom doesn't ask for a KRA PIN, ID copy or any business paperwork to open one.

Is Pochi la Biashara free for customers right now?

Payments up to KES 200 are free, and above that they cost between KES 7 and KES 50, depending on the amount, as of October 2026. That's an offer running for three months from 1 August 2026, so it's near its end date. Check Safaricom's tariff page before you rely on it staying that low.

Can I withdraw directly from Pochi la Biashara without moving it to M-Pesa first?

Yes. Tell the agent you're withdrawing from Pochi la Biashara, or use the *334# menu. The standard M-Pesa agent withdrawal charge applies. Safaricom's tariff shows no separate, higher Pochi withdrawal fee.

What happens to my Pochi la Biashara balance if I opt out?

Safaricom moves whatever's in your Pochi wallet into your main M-Pesa account the moment you opt out, so you don't lose access to the money.

Can someone reverse a Pochi la Biashara payment without my approval?

No. Safaricom's product page says clearly that a Pochi payment "cannot be reversed without the approval of the business owner". That's the same protection a Paybill or Till has, and stronger than an ordinary phone-to-phone transfer.

What's the real difference between Pochi la Biashara and a Buy Goods till?

With Pochi, the customer pays a small, currently discounted fee and you keep the full amount; with Buy Goods, the customer pays nothing but Safaricom takes 0.55% off anything you receive over KES 500. Pochi also lets you withdraw cash directly, while Buy Goods funds usually need moving to M-Pesa or a Paybill first.