Africa’s largest mobile network operator, MTN Nigeria, has announced plans to build the largest fintech platform in the country, with the aim to reach 30 to 40 million active MTN MoMo wallets by 2025.
This was disclosed in the company’s sustainability report filed with the Nigeria Exchange Limited on Tuesday.
Part of the report reads,
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“MTN Nigeria has set a target of building the largest and most valuable fintech platform in Nigeria with 30-40 million active MTN MoMo wallets by 2025. In strict compliance with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s legal requirements, MTN Nigeria strives to uphold high standards of product development and continue to offer services to the Nigerian populace that allow more individuals across the country to easily transact via our USSD channel, to save their money with us, connect with our MoMo Agents for deposit and withdraw and make transactions on the MoMo App.
“In 2023, our commitment to promoting financial inclusion resulted in the number of active mobile money (MoMo PSB) wallets increasing by 163.2 percent to 5.3 million. We plan to continue finetuning our services so that more people have easy, convenient, and low-cost access to financial services”.
According to the firm, in alignment with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s legal requirements, the company offers services that enable more Nigerians to easily transact via the USSD channel, save money, connect with MoMo Agents for deposits and withdrawals, and conduct transactions on the MoMo App.
The telecoms giant noted that the MoMo platform is focused on three main activities which are; MoMo Wallet, MoMo Payment & E-commerce, and MoMo Bank tech, to enhance the financial experiences of users and businesses alike.
MTN added that the e-commerce platform had been particularly beneficial for entrepreneurs, providing practical solutions that enhance their business operations. The company closed the year with over 326,700 active MoMo agents, marking a 46 percent increase compared to 2022.
Launched in May 2022, MTN MoMo Nigeria, has continued to hit an increasing number of active users as it aims to bridge the financial inclusion gap in Nigeria. In 2023, it reportedly reached 5.3 million active wallet users on its platform as of December. According to MTN, MoMo PSB was able to grow its wallet users by 3.3 million to achieve such a feat. Also, deposits held for MoMo customers surged by 432% to N6.68 billion in the first quarter (Q1), of 2023.
The company further stated that mobile money gained more traction by expanding its agent network in the year by 103,000 to 327,000. MoMo’s active merchant ecosystem, which started in March 2023, also reached over 324,000 by December 2023, according to the company’s records.
In Q1 of 2024, MoMo added more than 75k merchants, bringing the total number of merchants within its ecosystem to over 400k. In March of the same year, MoMo experienced a 32.2% surge in transaction volumes.
With an expansive agent network of over 166,000 agents and digitized partnership infrastructure, MoMo PSB is positioned to enable millions of unbanked and underserved Nigerians to access a wide range of financial service products.
With over 72.5 million active users, MoMo continues to solidify its position as a leading fintech service provider in Africa, tapping into the continent’s burgeoning mobile banking sector. The company’s success underscores the growing trend of Africa’s young and tech-savvy population embracing mobile technology to address financial needs.