Remittance deals continue to hog the fintech headlines in Africa. MTN MoMo, Mastercard and Equity Bank Kenya are the latest companies to make announcements about plans to serve the vast African remittance market.
Indeed, the MTN Mobile Money (MoMo) app is already part of that market but has now significantly expanded its international remittance capabilities by launching 25 additional wallet corridors in ten new countries.
That means MoMo users can now send money to more than 200 million wallets, maintained by 39 partners, across 24 African countries.
MTN says it will now benefit migrant populations in South Africa who send money home to Mozambique, Malawi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Ethiopia, Gabon, Kenya, Madagascar, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Tanzania are among the other countries where passageways have recently been opened. Existing corridors are in Zambia, Ghana, Cameroon, Rwanda, Uganda, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Congo Brazzaville, Benin, Guinea Conakry, and Guinea Bissau.
Meanwhile, coinciding with its news about a deal with pan-African digital payments company Onafriq, payment giant Mastercard has announced a strategic collaboration with Kenya’s Equity Bank that will enable Equity Bank customers to send money safely and securely to 30 countries.
Through Mastercard Cross-Border Services, Equity Bank customers will be able to send funds through any Equity Branch location in Kenya. This platform offers a suite of benefits including faster transaction times, enhanced security measures and competitive pricing, making cross-border transactions accessible to consumers across Equity Bank’s expansive market network.
Both announcements highlight the low fees their services charge, underlining just how competitive this market is getting.
Indeed, the ITWeb Africa news service quotes consulting group McKinsey, which says that more than US$2 billion is processed in daily transactions, which is equivalent to more than 40% of the GDP of sub-Saharan Africa.
