MTN plans to acquire a banking licence immediately after the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) opens its national payment system to financial technology companies and non-banking entities.
The telecom giant already has a banking licence in Nigeria with its MoMo Payment Service Bank.
MoMo offers payments and money transfers to individuals and businesses, with customers using their phones to identify digital wallets holding money.
The PSB targets small and informal businesses like kiosks and the low-income consumer market, which still depend heavily on cash.
According to reports, MoMo is one of the several fintech firms in Nigeria’s 774 local government areas.
It reportedly participated in SARB’s working group to develop guidelines to enable direct participation in core banking activities.
The guidelines are essential to balance innovation with risks associated with an open financial system.
The company plans to make MoMo a low-cost alternative to core banking and traditional bank accounts.
Available data shows that as of 2023, MoMo boasts 5.3 million users in Nigeria, surpassing its previous year’s record of two million subscribers.
MTN has introduced several enhancements to MoMo service in the last two years to drive adoption.
It launched a business wallet and international remittances in South Africa and hopes to replicate it in Nigeria.
Meanwhile, MTN Nigeria is championing higher telecom rates due to the current exchange rate volatility in Nigeria.
The company said there would be no incentives for investment in the telecom industry if the tariff structure remains unchanged.
The company’s chief financial officer, Modupe Kadri, disclosed this during a recent panel discussion organised by the Nigeria Economic Summit Group (NESG).
In February 2024, MTN announced a partnership with Mastercard, giving all MoMo wallet holders a virtual and physical card to make payments in several countries.
The development came after Mastercard acquired a $200 million stake in MTN Group Fintech.
These new features have boosted MoMo’s service revenue, which increased 59.1% yearly in the first half of 2024.
The move continued into the third quarter of 2024 when its revenue increased relative to 2023.
TimesNow.com.ng earlier reported that USSD transactions in Nigeria hit 252.06 in volume, valued at N2.19 trillion in the two quarters of 2024.
