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Minisend Upgrades: Spend USDC Directly on M-Pesa in Kenya with Faster Base Transactions

Minisend Upgrades: Spend USDC Directly on M-Pesa in Kenya with Faster Base Transactions

If you're into the Base ecosystem—home to tons of buzzing meme tokens and innovative dApps—you'll want to hear about the latest from Minisend. This handy app, built on Base, is making it easier than ever to bridge your crypto holdings to real-world spending, especially in East Africa.

On August 18, 2025, developer Chris Oketch (@_ChrisOketch) dropped an exciting update on X about Minisend's new features. Here's what he shared in the original post:

@_Minisend just got better!

  • Easily spend your usdc to till numbers and paybill numbers in Kenya i.e shopping, transport, groceries etc.

That means we've unlocked an opportunity for micro payment services in Kenya via USDC on @base

  • You can now track your monthly and daily expenditures via your user profile on the app as suggested by @BasedKago

-We've increased our settlement time from 120secs to 60secs,more time saving for a good user experience ..works for both currencies NGN & Ksh

-More cheaper transactions through Base Pay and paymaster from @CoinbaseDev thanks to @neodaoist and the base team.

Let us know what you'd like to see happening on @_Minisend next,thank you for the feedback!

Minisend app interface showing USDC to M-Pesa conversion options

Breaking Down the Updates

Let's unpack these enhancements one by one. Minisend is essentially an off-ramp tool that converts USDC—a stablecoin pegged to the US dollar—into local mobile money like M-Pesa in Kenya or bank transfers in Nigeria. It's built using MiniKit on Base, which is Coinbase's layer-2 Ethereum scaling solution known for low fees and fast transactions.

First up, the ability to spend USDC directly to till numbers and paybill numbers in Kenya. If you're not familiar, M-Pesa is a mobile money service hugely popular in Kenya, where till numbers are used for business payments (think small shops or vendors), and paybills are for larger bills or services. This update means you can use your USDC for everyday stuff like groceries, transport, or shopping without jumping through hoops. It's a game-changer for micro payments, allowing tiny transactions that traditional banking might not handle efficiently. Imagine cashing out small gains from your favorite Base meme token straight to a local vendor—super practical!

Next, expenditure tracking. As suggested by Eddie Kago (@BasedKago), you can now view your daily and monthly spending right in the app's user profile. This feature helps users keep tabs on their crypto-fueled expenses, promoting better financial management in the volatile world of blockchain.

Minisend transaction history screen displaying recent USDC expenditures

Settlement times have been slashed from 120 seconds to just 60 seconds. That's twice as fast, meaning your USDC converts to Kenyan Shillings (KSH) or Nigerian Naira (NGN) quicker, improving the overall user experience. In the fast-paced crypto space, every second counts, especially when dealing with real-time payments.

Lastly, transactions are now cheaper thanks to Base Pay and the paymaster feature from Coinbase Developer Platform (@CoinbaseDev). Shoutout to @neodaoist and the Base team for making this possible. Paymaster abstracts away gas fees, so users don't have to worry about Ethereum's network costs—perfect for onboarding newbies to the Base chain.

Why This Matters for the Base Community

Base has exploded as a hub for meme tokens, with projects like DEGEN or BRETT drawing massive attention. But what's the point of mooning on a meme coin if you can't easily spend your profits? Minisend bridges that gap, especially in emerging markets like Kenya and Nigeria, where mobile money dominates daily finance. This could boost onchain adoption in Africa, letting blockchain practitioners turn their USDC holdings into tangible value without leaving the ecosystem.

The post garnered positive vibes, with replies from folks like @BasedKago praising the speedy shipping and @nellycyberpro hyping the progress. Even Base lead Jesse Pollak (@jessepollak) dropped a fire emoji in support.

Chris is open to feedback, so if you're using Minisend or curious about Base apps, hit up the comments on the post. Updates like these show how Base is evolving beyond just memes into practical, everyday tools.

Stay tuned to Meme Insider for more on Base innovations and how they're shaping the future of crypto payments. If you're trading meme tokens on Base, tools like Minisend might just be your new best friend for seamless off-ramps.

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