M-Pesa Fraud Manager

Role purpose:

M-Pesa Fraud Manager leads the prevention, detection, investigation, and mitigation of fraud risks across Vodacash SA to protect customers, assets, and reputation. 

The role strengthens financial crimes frameworks and work closely with AML/CFT, Internal Controls, Compliance, Risk, Operations, and Law enforcement as appropriate, and leverages data analytics and technology to identify emerging threats. 

He/She ensures all fraud management activities are aligned with regulatory, governance, and industry best‑practice requirements while promoting a strong culture of integrity, vigilance and trust.

Key accountabilities and decision ownership

• Lead a comprehensive Vodacash SA M‑Pesa fraud risk management strategy, preventing, detecting, investigating, and mitigating fraud across the mobile money ecosystem to protect customers, financial assets, and the organization’s reputation.
•   Monitor M‑Pesa transactions and agent/merchant activities for suspicious patterns (e.g., commission fraud, float misuse, split deposits, SIM swaps, fake/duplicate registrations), detecting scams (including social engineering) and account takeovers early and intervening swiftly to prevent losses.
•     Investigate suspected mobile money fraud cases, coordinating with compliance, risk, legal, and other teams gather evidence, confirm incidents, and apply immediate actions (e.g., accounts suspension, reverse fraudulent transactions or commissions) to minimize losses and recover funds or revenue.
• Strengthen and continuously improve fraud controls, conducting regular fraud risk assessments across M‑Pesa products and agent networks to identify vulnerabilities, and updating monitoring rules, thresholds, authentication measures, and processes to counter evolving fraud patterns and emerging scams.
•  Develop and enhance AI/ML-based fraud prediction models and continuously improve detection accuracy.
• Provide governance and oversight of fraud risk management, including timely reporting of fraud incidents and metrics to senior management and regulators, and ensuring compliance with fraud-related policies and regulatory requirements.
• Collaborate with key stakeholders, including AML/CFT compliance, risk management, operations, customer support, IT, and Sales and Distribution and Commercial teams, to align fraud prevention efforts, ensure consistent case handling, and support fraud awareness training for employees, merchants and agents.
• Champion customer protection and trust, leading proactive fraud education initiatives, ensuring prompt support and communication to customers or agents affected by fraud, and maintaining confidence in the mobile money service through effective issue resolution.

Decision Ownership

• Configure and tune fraud controls and systems (rules and thresholds) on the M‑Pesa platform to balance fraud prevention and customer experience.
• Authorize immediate preventive actions (account suspension, transaction blocks, agent suspensions) in response to suspected fraud, in line with applicable policies and procedures.
• Escalate material fraud incidents to senior management, governance forums, or law enforcement as required.
• Determine internal disciplinary actions for fraud-related misconduct in coordination with HR and compliance.
• Approve or recommend remediation initiatives (control/process changes, new tools, customer redress) based on investigation outcomes and risk analysis.    Core competencies, knowledge, and experience
• Strategic and Critical Thinking.
• Proven experience in fraud management, transaction monitoring systems, fraud investigations and loss mitigation within banking sector, telecom, mobile money (agents, merchant, interoperability, account takeover, fake registrations), payments, fintech, or financial services.
• Strong analytical and investigative skills, including transaction analysis and fraud pattern detection.
• Fraud risk management and control design knowledge, aligned with AML/CFT and governance standards.
• Decisive leadership with sound judgment under pressure.
• Effective stakeholder collaboration and clear communication across technical and non‑technical teams with outstanding communication skills, written and verbal, but also good listener.
• Exposure to regulatory engagement and reporting on fraud-related matters.
• Demonstrated cross‑functional coordination with compliance, risk, operations, IT, and agent networks.
• Strong organization, presentation, reporting skills and attention to detail, time management, multi-task and capable of working under pressure.
• Motivated, self-confident, interpersonal, good leadership and coach; etc.
•  Excellent analytical, research, development, and problem-solving skills.
• Demonstrate a high level of emotional intelligence.
• Relevant experience in Data Modelling, Reporting and Data analysis

Must have technical / professional qualifications:

• University Degree Economics, Law, Computer Science, Engineering, Criminology, or similar domain.
•  ACFE, ACAMS, ICA Certificate or similar.
•  Highly Computer Literate.
• 1+ years of Management experience;

Key performance indicators:

•    Fraud Loss Management: Low rate, continuous reduction of net fraud exposure.
•    Recovery Performance: high fraud recovery rates including customer remediation and commission claw back mechanisms.
•    Detection Effectiveness: enhance detection capabilities and reduce false positives cases with advanced analytics.
•    Case Management Efficiency: timely investigation/resolution of fraud cases ensuring customer protection with prompt handling complaints and reimbursements to maintain Trust in M-pesa services.
•    Key Fraud typologies detection and documentation.
•    Ensure compliance with applicable laws, policies and procedures.