Mastercard, Onafriq partner to bring secure payments for SMEs

Global payments firm Mastercard and pan-African payments company Onafriq have partnered to bring secure payments to consumers and small and medium enterprises (SME) across the continent.

According to the two companies, the collaboration will drive the growth of digital financial services, including mobile money transactions, cross-border remittances, and cross-border settlements.

Amnah Ajmal, Mastercard's executive vice president of market development for EEMEA, said technological advancements are steering the digital financial services industry, and providing accessible digital payment solutions is imperative for empowering consumers to seamlessly transition to digital commerce.

"At Mastercard, we seek to leverage fintech partnerships in Africa to catalyze transformative change across industries that benefit individuals, communities, and businesses. We look forward to collaborating with Onafriq to pave digital pathways and drive innovation across the continent's payment ecosystem," Ajmal continued.

The partnership will drive the growth of digital financial services, including mobile money transactions, cross-border remittances, and cross-border settlements. (Source: Image by wayhomestudio on Freepik)

Furthermore, the companies added that the collaborative effort will enable Onafriq to support the full range of their consumer's digital commerce needs, interactions, and experiences by leveraging Mastercard's technology. This will contribute to a seamless transition into the digital economy.

"We are excited about our collaboration with Mastercard, as we share a strong alignment of vision and mission, interoperability, and markets," said Dare Okoudjou, Onafriq founder and CEO.

Mastercard partnerships

Mastercard has been involved in many different partnerships with African companies in recent times.

In February 2024, the global payments firm invested US$200 million into MTN Group's fintech business, expanding on a larger commercial relationship between the payment-technology corporation and the telecom operator.

That deal was originally announced in August 2023, but at the time MTN didn't say how big the investment would be.

Mastercard has also recently appointed Folasade Femi-Lawal as its new country manager and area business head for West Africa.

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*Top image, from left to right in back: Mark Elliott, president, Africa, at Mastercard; Chrisitan Bwakira, group chief commercial officer at Onafriq; Muhammad Nana, vice president: fintech, enabler and PSP partnerships EEMEA at Mastercard. From left to right (front): Dimitrios Dosis, president EEMEA at Mastercard, and Dare Okoudjou, founder and CEO of Onafriq. (Source: Onafriq).

— Matshepo Sehloho, Associate Editor, Connecting Africa