Africa’s three most populated countries of Egypt, Ethiopia and Nigeria are expected to spark a wave of adoption, which could lead to adding more than 110 million new mobile money accounts over the next five years.
GSMA, a global umbrella body that represents the interests of mobile operators worldwide, uniting more than 750 operators and nearly 400 companies in the broader mobile ecosystem, stated this while unveiling its eighth annual ‘State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money’.
It said these additions can be attributed to several reforms by the three countries, which remains the fastest-growing mobile markets in the world, and the backdrop of increasing internet access and smartphone adoption. More than ever, mobile’s unparalleled global scale provides a tremendous opportunity to reach the 1.7 billion people who remain financially excluded.
Meanwhile, the industry report noted that, globally, the mobile money industry processed US$1.3 billion in transactions per day in 2018 with more than 866 million registered accounts in 90 countries – a 20 per cent increase from 2017.
“Our research shows that for the world’s most vulnerable, the benefits of mobile money are real and wide-ranging. Throughout 2018, the GSMA has continued to support operators in reaching customers that have traditionally been underserved by the financial system,” said Mats Granryd, Director General, GSMA.