The South African telco’s new services will make it one of the country’s leading financial services platforms
Africa’s largest mobile operator has put South Africa’s banks on notice after launching services allowing its nine million mobile money subscribers to send cash abroad and businesses to accept payments via an app. The telco also launched a MoMo business wallet and simplified payments solutions.
Given the wider absence of banking infrastructure across the continent, telcos have been quick to fill the void by pushing into the rapidly growing fintech space. With about 9 million registered mobile money subscribers in South Africa since its reintroduction in 2019, MTN South Africa’s chief financial services officer Bradwin Roper told reporters the group is largely focusing on the roughly 15% of South Africans that are still unbanked.
MTN’s fintech arm has 16 different mobile money businesses and includes services such as its mobile money platform MoMo, insurance, airtime lending and e-commerce. After securing investment from Mastercard last month, CEO Ralph Mupita said the telco would continue to scout for opportunities to sell up to 30% of the business, which contributes almost a fifth of its total revenues.
It started with a click
South Africa-based mobile money users will now be able to send money to recipients across more than 10 African countries in real time if they are also registered users of the MTN service, Roper told Reuters.
In partnership with Clicksendnow, a dealer approved by the South African Reserve Bank, MTN MoMo international remittances destinations are now available in, Zambia, Ghana, Cameroon, Rwanda, Uganda, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Congo Brazzaville, Benin, Guinea Conakry, and Guinea Bissau, with cash collection points available at 41 locations in Zimbabwe.
The telco also launched a virtual wallet for business owners that will allow them to accept payments via the app or QR code, a way to limit the use of cash by some of South Africa’s “spaza” shops, the informal stores that dot township corners.
To make payments easier for such business owners, MTN also launched what it said are cheaper-to-rent point-of-sale devices that merge payments and other added services like airtime purchases into one device.
About 80% of South Africa’s population visit spaza shops daily, and the spaza industry is valued at about 178 billion rand ($9 billion), Roper said.
“The versatility of the MoMo Business Wallet is ushering in a new era of financial management for businesses of all sizes,” CFSO Roper told Tech Financials. “With this innovative tool, businesses can accept payments directly from customers for transactions on everything from prepaid services to shopping vouchers, completely fee-free.
“Flexible cash-out options ensure easy access to funds, providing both convenience and security in financial management. It’s the ultimate in simplified financial transactions,” he added.
“Within MTN stores, new point-of-sale devices will also allow users to make card payments at a lower service fee, giving customers the choice to pay for purchases with MoMo and receive cashback rewards. The storeowner benefits by not having a transaction fee deducted on these MoMo services,” said Roper.
Another new service, MoMo Eazi, allows users to create a registered profile on the MoMo app that enables card payments without the complexities of a full registration process. The company also launched funeral insurance that allows customers to take out cover for either six months or 12 months with just one payment, instead of monthly debit orders until you die.
Pictured: MTN South Africa’s chief financial services officer Bradwin Roper (left) with MTN South Africa CEO Charles Molapisi (right).