Mastercard and MTN announced a strategic partnership to enable millions of MTN MoMo customers in 16 African countries to shop and pay online with global merchants.
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Through a Mastercard virtual payment solution linked to MTN MoMo (Mobile Money) wallets, consumers can now unlock a host of opportunities and shop from their favorite international brands online while in their home countries or travelling abroad.
The announcement comes at a time when e-commerce and online shopping are reaching record levels across Africa. According to the Economy 2021 outlook conducted by the Mastercard Economics Institute, 20-30% of the COVID-19-related surge in e-commerce will remain a permanent feature of overall retail spending.
And shopping through mobile is largely how consumers access these opportunities.
Across Sub-Saharan Africa, mobile devices are the primary channel used to connect to the internet. According to GSMA, by 2025, there will be 300 million more people using their devices to access internet services.
In light of this significant growth, mobile financial services have become the dominant form of digital payments, with twice as many mobile money accounts as bank accounts in the region. As a result, consumers increasingly expect to have access to a broader range of online offers and digital financial services.
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Through this strategic partnership, MTN customers with a Mastercard virtual payment solution linked to their MoMo wallets can shop on global platforms regardless of whether or not they have a bank account.
The MTN MoMo virtual payments solution will enable consumers to explore and shop at well-known global e-commerce brands and pay quickly and securely for leisure shopping, travel, accommodation, entertainment, streaming services and more. It also allows small business owners to purchase from suppliers abroad and gain access to a range of additional financial services and solutions.
“We are very excited about this partnership with Mastercard, which is another step in realizing our ambition to build Africa’s largest fintech platform, accelerating economic and social development through digital innovations for the benefit of citizens across the continent and beyond,” said MTN Group Chief Digital and Fintech Officer Serigne Dioum.
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