Etica's M-PESA paybill is 4096483 and the account number is your Etica client code, the short code ending in a letter that the app shows after onboarding. Deposits post as cash the same day and move into the fund on the next business day, when they start earning; withdrawals to M-PESA of up to Sh 250,000 a day arrive within seconds at a charge of Sh 4 to Sh 30, and larger withdrawals or bank withdrawals are paid within two working days, the bank route free. The one thing a Muslim investor must do deliberately is open the Shariah fund as a separate product in the app, because the paybill alone does not decide which fund your money lands in.
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Which Etica funds are Shariah-compliant
Etica Capital is a CMA-licensed fund manager, and its products page lists four conventional lines (a KES and a USD money market fund, a KES and a USD fixed income fund, and a wealth fund in three classes) alongside the Shariah line, shown as Etica Shariah Fund in KES and USD and, on a second ticker, as Etica Special Shariah Fund. Only the Shariah products are screened; the money market and fixed income funds hold conventional interest-bearing paper and are not for a Muslim investor. The products table printed an effective annual profit of 11.64% for the KES Shariah fund on the day we checked, net of fees and gross of withholding tax, with the ticker on the same page showing a different figure, so read the number as a daily snapshot. The Etica Shariah funds guide reviews governance and the rate history; this page is only about moving money.
The minimum investment and top-up for the Shariah fund is Sh 100, there is no lock-in period, and withdrawals are stated as within two business days. Etica's own FAQ warns that rates change daily, can go down as well as up, and are not fixed. That is consistent with a profit-sharing fund rather than an interest product, which is the whole point of choosing it over a conventional money market fund.
Step one: open the account and add the Shariah fund
Onboarding is digital through the iOS or Android app or the web form at clients.eticacap.com, and Etica says it takes about three minutes. KYC is a copy of your national ID or passport, your KRA PIN certificate and a passport photo or selfie, each under 3 MB. Chamas register as a self-help group if registered or as a group account if not, minors through a parent with a birth certificate, and joint accounts can add as many members as you wish.
After the first account is open, the Shariah fund is added from inside the app: log in, open the products list, scroll to the Shariah fund and select add account. Etica emails a summary with that account's details. You can add any fund the same way and rename each one to a goal such as school fees or Hajj. If you only ever open the default money market account, your paybill deposits will go into a conventional fund, which is the mistake this page exists to prevent.
Step two: depositing by paybill, Airtel Money, bank or agent
Etica's FAQ gives the paybill in its Airtel Money instructions: dial *222#, choose Paybill and Till Payments, then M-PESA paybill, enter Etica's paybill 4096483, and enter your Etica client code (the FAQ's example is 1555M) as the account number. On Safaricom the same paybill and client code are used through Lipa na M-PESA. Etica does not quote the M-PESA paybill charge on the customer side; Safaricom's M-PESA charges page is the reference for that, and the charge is yours, not the fund's.
Free deposit routes exist. Etica states that over-the-counter cash or cheque deposits at any Equity Bank branch and cash deposits at Equity agents carry no charge. For the USD Shariah fund, Etica gives an M-PESA paybill 247247 with account 0180285106666, which is the Equity Bank paybill for its USD collection account in the name of Etica Unit Trust Collection Account under Equity Nominees, and asks you to send the confirmation to its WhatsApp line or to fundops@eticacap.com so the deposit can be matched; the bank converts shillings to dollars at its rate that day. Bank transfers from a KES account to the same Equity USD account work the same way, and Etica accepts inbound remittances from services such as WorldRemit, Wise and Taptap Send into its KES or USD accounts.
- Paybill 4096483, account = your Etica client code, for KES funds from M-PESA or Airtel Money.
- Equity Bank branch counter or Equity agent, cash or cheque, with no deposit charge.
- Paybill 247247, account 0180285106666, for the USD funds, then send the confirmation to Etica.
- Bank transfer to Etica's Equity collection accounts, KES or USD.
- Remittance services into the same accounts for diaspora investors.
When a deposit starts earning
Etica's FAQ is specific. A deposit by bank, M-PESA or Equity agent is first captured under cash balance, and it moves automatically to the investment balance on the next business day, which is when it starts earning; the date appears in the app under activity and in the emailed PDF confirmation. A deposit on a Friday or at the weekend is not invested until Monday; a deposit on a public holiday waits for the next working day. Once invested, the money earns on weekends and holidays that follow. For the Shariah fund the daily figure is profit rather than interest, allocated the same way.
The practical rule is to deposit by Thursday evening for a Friday posting, and not to expect a Saturday deposit to show earnings before Tuesday's statement. The PDF confirmations and statements are password protected; the password is in the welcome email Etica sent when you opened the account.
Step three: withdrawing to M-PESA or bank
First add your M-PESA number under profile, add bank or mobile money, then choose withdraw and select the saved number. Etica states that you can withdraw up to Sh 250,000 to M-PESA instantly, within seconds, at any hour including nights, weekends and holidays, as a daily limit; amounts from Sh 250,001 upward are paid to M-PESA within two working days. The M-PESA leg carries a transaction charge of between Sh 4 and Sh 30 depending on amount, shown before you confirm, with Sh 30 being the charge at Sh 250,000. Withdrawal to a bank account is free and paid within two working days.
Once the money is in M-PESA, Safaricom's charges apply to whatever you do next. Its M-PESA charges page lists agent cash withdrawal at Sh 29 for Sh 101 to Sh 1,500, Sh 52 for Sh 2,501 to Sh 3,500, Sh 115 for Sh 7,501 to Sh 10,000 and Sh 309 for Sh 50,001 to Sh 250,000, and it caps the M-PESA balance at Sh 500,000 and a single transaction at Sh 250,000. A withdrawal that is only passing through M-PESA to a bank is therefore better sent to the bank directly from Etica, free, than routed through the wallet.
| Action | Channel | Minimum or limit | Timing stated by Etica | Charge stated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Deposit KES | Paybill 4096483, account = client code | Sh 100 | Posts as cash same day, invested next business day | M-PESA paybill tariff, not quoted by Etica |
| Deposit KES free | Equity branch counter or Equity agent | Sh 100 | Invested next business day | Free |
| Deposit USD | Paybill 247247, account 0180285106666, then send confirmation | Not stated | Matched after confirmation | Bank conversion at its daily rate |
| Withdraw to M-PESA | App, saved M-PESA number | Up to Sh 250,000 per day instant | Seconds, any day or hour | Sh 4 to Sh 30 |
| Withdraw to M-PESA, large | App | Sh 250,001 and above | Within two working days | Sh 4 to Sh 30 |
| Withdraw to bank | App, saved bank account | Not stated | Within two working days | Free |
Switching between funds without landing in a conventional one
Etica treats each fund as a separate account under one login. Money paid to the paybill with your client code is credited to the account that code points to, so if you hold both a money market account and a Shariah account you must confirm which account number the deposit is going to; the emailed confirmation and the activity screen show it. Moving money from the conventional fund to the Shariah fund is a withdrawal from one and a deposit to the other, which means the money sits as cash for a business day in between. If you accidentally deposited into the money market fund, withdraw it the same day so that no interest accrues, and if any interest did post, give that amount to charity rather than keep it, as explained in the interest on savings article.
A clean set-up for a Muslim household is one Shariah KES account for the emergency fund, an optional Shariah USD account for dollar savings, and no conventional accounts at all, so that the paybill can only ever reach a screened fund. Chama treasurers should open the group account directly as a Shariah account at registration, since the group's deposits will all flow to that code.
Statements, tax and records
Etica's quoted yields are net of fees and gross of withholding tax; its FAQ shows the daily calculation on Sh 100 and then multiplies the result by 0.85 to remove the 15% withholding tax, so the figure that lands in your account is the after-tax profit. The tax is deducted by the fund, which is why a KRA PIN is part of KYC. Monthly fact sheets are emailed to clients and posted on the site, and the app shows cash balance, investment balance and activity. For zakat, the investment balance on your zakat date is the figure to use; the investing hub and the small amounts guide cover what to do with the money once it is growing.
Our view
For a reader who already has an Etica login, the only action is to open the Shariah fund as its own account, move any balance out of the conventional funds, and save the Shariah account's client code as the paybill account for every future deposit. For a new investor who found Etica through the Shariah fund, register, add the Shariah account first, and make the first deposit at an Equity agent or branch to avoid the paybill charge, then use the paybill for small top-ups.
For anyone comparing routes, the Mansa-X, Etica and Ziidi comparison sets Etica's Sh 100 entry and instant M-PESA liquidity against the alternatives. Remember that a unit trust is not covered by deposit insurance; keep the protected core in a bank Mudarabah account and use Etica for the layer you can leave to grow. Facts checked against eticacap.com, safaricom.co.ke on 26 September 2026.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Etica paybill number?
Etica's M-PESA paybill is 4096483, and the account number is your Etica client code, which the FAQ illustrates with the example 1555M. The same paybill is used from Airtel Money through the *222# menu. For the USD funds the route is paybill 247247 with account 0180285106666, which is Etica's Equity Bank collection account, after which you send the confirmation message to Etica for matching.
How long does an Etica withdrawal to M-PESA take?
Etica states that withdrawals of up to Sh 250,000 a day reach M-PESA within seconds at any time, including nights, weekends and public holidays. Amounts of Sh 250,001 and above are paid to M-PESA within two working days. Bank withdrawals are free and arrive within two working days. The app shows the M-PESA charge, between Sh 4 and Sh 30, before you confirm.
Why does my Etica balance show zero after a deposit?
Look under cash balance rather than investment balance. Etica captures every deposit as cash first and moves it to the investment balance on the next business day, which is when it starts earning. A deposit made on a Friday, at the weekend or on a public holiday is invested on the next working day. The investment date is shown under activity and in the emailed PDF confirmation.
Does Etica have a USSD code?
Etica's site does not publish a USSD service of its own. The USSD routes it describes are Airtel Money's *222# menu for paying the paybill and the standard M-PESA Lipa na M-PESA menu. Account management, adding funds, viewing statements and withdrawing are done in the Etica app or the web portal at clients.eticacap.com, with support by phone, WhatsApp and email.
How do I make sure my deposit goes to the Shariah fund?
Open the Shariah fund as its own account in the app and use that account's client code as the paybill account number. Each Etica fund has a separate account under your login, and the paybill credits whichever account the code points to. Check the emailed confirmation and the activity screen after each deposit. If money lands in a conventional fund by mistake, withdraw it the same day.
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Is there a charge to deposit into Etica?
Etica itself charges nothing on deposits, and it lists free routes: cash or cheque at any Equity Bank branch and cash at Equity agents. Paybill deposits attract Safaricom's or Airtel's own tariff on your side, which Etica does not quote. Bank transfers carry your bank's transfer fee. The fund's management fee is already inside the published yield, which is quoted net of fees and gross of the 15% withholding tax.
