Kenyan mobile money service, M-PESA has entered a strategic partnership with global e-Commerce company, Amazon, which will see M-PESA provide global remittance services.
The United Nations estimates that the value of remittances globally will surpass $4 trillion by 2030, and M-PESA is said to be aiming to become a force in the cross-border money transfers sector.
M-PESA, which is expected to become a stand-alone operation in 2023, may be looking at the partnership to enhance is competitiveness in a crowded cross-border payments landscape.
As an independent fintech player, M-PESA will face stiff competition from established money transfer providers such as Western Union, Money Gram, World Remit, and Remitly. Additionally, emerging players like Flutterwave and ChipperCash from Nigeria, as well as Waya Money and Waya, an African-centered digital banking application based in Washington DC from Kenya.
In 2021, MPESA said it had achieved more than 50 million monthly active users (MAU) in Africa with users spanning across seven countries, rivalling MTN MoMo’s 56.8 million users.
MPESA’s declared countries of operations include:
- Kenya
- Tanzania
- Mozambique
- DRC
- Lesotho
- Ghana
- Egypt
M-PESA, which is expected to become operational in Ethiopia as well, also indicated that over 500,000 businesses transact $7 billion every month on their mobile money and digital platforms.
