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Title: [2015-11-24] Lipisha and Bitpesa Sue Safaricom For Cutting Off Access To M-Pesa Post by: EternalWingsofGod on November 26, 2015, 07:35:34 AM Lipisha is a Kenyan company that uses various platforms to automate mobile payments, allowing businesses to collect, automate and integrate payments from customers and clients using mobile money. One of these platforms was Safaricom’s M-Pesa, at least until November 12th, when access was cut off for Bitpesa, for whom Safaricom explicitly asked Lipisha not to continue serving.
The termination was carried out without notice, with Lipisha notified via SMS after the fact. This prompted Lipisha to take Safaricom to court. Certifying the matter as urgent, High Court Judge Joseph Onguto added that Safaricom would have to provide grounds for this termination. Bitpesa is one of Lipisha’s largest clients, and so they were who was joined as a co-plaintiff in the suit. The two firms blamed Safaricom for using its monopoly on the mobile money industry to intimidate Lipisha into ceasing its services on M-Pesa. Particularly affected is Bitpesa, which is a bitcoin trading platform. On Bitpesa, users can convert bitcoin into Kenya Shillings and use the M-Pesa platform to send this money to any user with an account. Safaricom has been sued for allegedly using intimidation to suspend the two firms’ services. Article Continuation: http://techcabal.com/2015/11/24/lipisha-safaricom-lawsuit/ Title: Re: [2015-11-24] Lipisha and Bitpesa Sue Safaricom For Cutting Off Access To M-Pesa Post by: Denker on November 29, 2015, 05:48:57 PM And of course, Safaricom is shitting their pants. They are going to lose on every M-Pesa transaction that brings them gigantic profits every year, according to the "60 Minutes" report by CBS last week. And here we see Bitcoin disrupting again!!
I highly recommend to watch the cbsnews report! http://www.cbsnews.com/news/future-of-money-kenya-m-pesa-60-minutes/ (http://www.cbsnews.com/news/future-of-money-kenya-m-pesa-60-minutes/) Quote The company takes a tiny service charge out of each transaction. How much money annually does Safaricom make from M-PESA in Kenya? "A quarter of a billion dollars," says Collymore. "You don't have to be greedy to be successful." https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/60-minutes-highlights-mobile-payment-service-m-pesa-changed-life-kenya/ (https://www.cryptocoinsnews.com/60-minutes-highlights-mobile-payment-service-m-pesa-changed-life-kenya/) Title: Re: [2015-11-24] Lipisha and Bitpesa Sue Safaricom For Cutting Off Access To M-Pesa Post by: aso118 on November 30, 2015, 01:47:26 AM It is a pity. I thought bitepesa and mpesa could complement each other.
Unfortunately, existing businesses now see bitcoin as a threat. I hope the courts act quickly against the misuse of this monopoly. Title: Re: [2015-11-24] Lipisha and Bitpesa Sue Safaricom For Cutting Off Access To M-Pesa Post by: Kakmakr on November 30, 2015, 06:24:52 AM It just shows you how centralized entities can govern their own rule and make decisions that benefit them. This is a wonderful example why decentralization is very important. No single service can make stupid decisions to stop or block any services. M-Pesa is a competing technology and it has been around, even before Bitcoin was developed.
Let's just hope the courts finds in favor of Bitpesa. ^hmf^ |