Eastern and Southern African regulator probes Airtel Money 

·
February 3, 2025
·
6 min read
Airtel Money

Below is a delayed version of our flagship newsletter, Techpoint Digest

Every weekday, 30,000 subscribers get a fun 5-minute roundup of happenings in African and global tech, directly in their inbox, hours before everyone else.

Victoria from Techpoint here,

Salve,

Here's what I've got for you today:

  • COMESA investigates Airtel Money practices
  • AfDB backs digital revolution in 9 countries with $160M
  • The end of cash in South Africa?

Eastern and Southern African regulator probes Airtel Money 

Airtel Money

Airtel Money is making waves in Kenya, Uganda, and Malawi, but now it’s facing some heat. The  Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) Competition Commission is investigating the mobile money service over complaints of hidden charges and shady exchange rates on international transfers, according to BusinessDaily.

Some Kenyan customers have reported that the fees displayed before transactions don’t always match what they actually get charged. Others say they’re left in the dark about which intermediaries handle their transfers and what exchange rates Airtel Money is using. 

Similar complaints have surfaced in Uganda and Malawi, with users noticing exchange rate inconsistencies and a general lack of transparency in their transactions.

Now, the Commission is calling on affected customers to come forward before February 28, 2024, to help with the investigation. That said, it’s important to note that Airtel isn’t being accused of anything just yet — this is just a fact-finding mission for now.

This probe comes at a time when Airtel Money has been gaining serious ground in Kenya’s mobile money market, challenging Safaricom’s long-standing M-PESA dominance. Over the past year leading up to September 2024, Airtel Money’s market share jumped from 2.9% to 7.6%, while M-PESA saw a slight dip from 98% to 92.3%, according to Kenya’s Communications Authority.

The reason for Airtel Money’s growth? Lower fees. It scrapped charges for Airtel-to-Airtel transfers back in 2020 and offers cheaper rates for sending and withdrawing money compared to M-PESA. For instance, sending KSh 1,000 ($7.7) to another network costs KSh 11 on Airtel Money, while M-PESA charges KSh 13 ($0.093). Withdrawing the same amount? KSh 29 ($0.22) on Airtel Money — KSh 2 less than M-PESA.

Let the best of tech news come to you
Join 30,000 subscribers who receive Techpoint Digest, a fun week-daily 5-minute roundup of happenings in African and global tech, directly in your inbox, hours before everyone else.
Digest Subscription

Give it a try, you can unsubscribe anytime. Privacy Policy.

Airtel Money has also been working to fix its biggest weakness — its agent network. In 2024, it partnered with supermarket giant Naivas to expand its reach, making it easier for customers to access cash-out points.

READ MORE   GTBank and 2 others to transition to credit institutions in Uganda by June

Despite this ongoing investigation, Airtel Money’s aggressive push into the market is undeniable. M-PESA is still the dominant player in Kenya, but Airtel is slowly carving out a bigger space for itself. Let’s see how this plays out.


AfDB backs AXIAN Telecom with $160M

funding

The African Development Bank (AfDB) is backing AXIAN Telecom with a $160 million loan to help boost digital access and financial inclusion across nine African countries. This funding will drive the rollout of 4G and 5G networks, expand AXIAN’s operations into more regions, and push digital innovation across the continent.

AXIAN Telecom, based in Mauritius, already serves 42.9 million mobile users, 11.4 million data customers, and 15.2 million mobile financial service users, making it one of the big players in Africa’s digital transformation.

But beyond just upgrading networks, a big part of this funding will support women entrepreneurs. More than $10 million is set aside to help 22,000 women-run businesses in Madagascar through AXIAN’s Mvola mobile money platform. 

Another $2.5 million grant will focus on improving financial literacy and credit access for 34,000 women-led businesses across Madagascar, Tanzania, and Senegal, helping them scale and enter the formal economy.

According to Solomon Quaynor, AfDB’s Vice President for Private Sector, Infrastructure, and Industrialisation, this investment is all about bridging Africa’s digital divide, boosting financial inclusion — especially for women — and creating new economic opportunities.

AXIAN’s CEO, Hassan Jaber, called the partnership a game-changer, emphasising that it will help make affordable internet access a reality while supporting the company’s recent Yas rebranding — a move that focuses on connecting Africa’s young, digital-savvy population.

This collaboration aligns with AfDB’s “Hi-5” development priorities, particularly its goals to industrialise and integrate Africa, which means better cross-border digital services and greater financial inclusion.

At its core, this deal is a huge boost for Africa’s digital future, ensuring more people — especially women — get the connectivity and financial tools they need to grow their businesses and thrive in the digital age.

READ MORE   Voltron Capital's launch, Spleet in MetaProp accelerator, Pineapple's latest funding

South Africa wants to go cashless

Lady holding smartphone and cash looking shocked
Image by Iwariahttps://iwaria.com/photo/MTgyMDE=

South Africa is taking a big step towards going cashless with a plan to launch a free digital payment platform for its residents. This is all part of Operation Vulindlela’s second phase, which aims to push digital transformation in the country.

Per a Business Times report, the government is looking at rolling out a free digital payment system to make everyday transactions easier while reducing cash use. Along with this, there’s also talk of introducing a digital wallet that could store important documents like IDs and driver’s licences.

Rudi Dicks, who heads the project management office in the Presidency, confirmed that digital payments and digital identification will be key areas of focus in this new phase of Operation Vulindlela. More details will be shared when the plan is officially launched.

Meanwhile, the South African Reserve Bank (SARB) is also making moves to modernise the country’s payment system. It’s working on a regulatory review that could allow non-banking institutions (like fintech startups and payment platforms) to process payments without needing a traditional bank as an intermediary. This could open up competition in the financial space and make digital payments more accessible, especially in informal markets where cash is still king.

Even though more South Africans are using credit/debit cards and digital wallets, SARB Governor Lesetja Kganyago believes that people still rely too much on cash. SARB data shows that almost half of South Africans withdraw all their money as soon as it hits their account — mainly due to bank fees, trust issues, and the fact that many small businesses still don’t accept cards.

That said, the demand for cash has actually been dropping. In 2023, it fell by 0.8%, showing that more people are starting to embrace digital transactions.

One big driver of this shift has been PayShap, a real-time payment system launched by BankservAfrica in partnership with South Africa’s major banks. It allows people to send and receive money instantly using just their phone number instead of a bank account number. Since launching in March 2023, PayShap has processed over 74.2 billion transactions worth R46 billion, with adoption growing rapidly. Apart from PayShap, digital wallets like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and Garmin Pay are also gaining traction.

READ MORE   Nigeria tops global dating fraud chart, per new report

In case you missed them

What I'm watching

Opportunities

  • Paga is hiring for several roles, including  CRO, Treasury Manager, and Doroki Growth Manger. Apply here.
  • Meta is looking for a Public Policy Manager in Anglophone West Africa. Apply here.
  • MasterCard is hiring a Manager for Product Management in Emerging Markets Acceptance Solutions. Apply here.
  • AltSchool Africa is hiring several instructors. Apply here.
  • Fast Forward Livestock Innovation Lab, in partnership with GIZ-SAIS, offers innovators the chance to turn their prototypes into commercially viable solutions for the livestock value chain, with up to ₦10 million in funding, expert mentorship, and guidance from an Entrepreneur-in-Residence. Apply here.
  • The World Health Organization (WHO) is recruiting suitably qualified candidates to fill several roles. Apply here.
  • Glovo is looking to fill certain roles in Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda and Morocco. Apply here.
  • Kuda is looking to fill different roles. Apply here.
  • Paystack is hiring for several roles. Apply here.
  • Techpoint Africa is hiring  a Market Research and Innovation Analyst. Apply here.
  • Moniepoint is hiring for several roles. Apply here.
  • Celebrate the New Year with delightful stories like Smart Couples. Call 421 on your Airtel line now — you won't be charged! Alternatively, call 07080601391 at your network's regular rate. Learn more here.
  • Follow Techpoint Africa's WhatsApp channel to stay on top of the latest trends and news in the African tech space here.

Have a productive week!

She's autistic and interested in mental health and how technology can help Africans with mental disorders. Find her on Twitter @latoria_ria.
She's autistic and interested in mental health and how technology can help Africans with mental disorders. Find her on Twitter @latoria_ria.
She's autistic and interested in mental health and how technology can help Africans with mental disorders. Find her on Twitter @latoria_ria.

Other Stories

43b, Emina Cres, Allen, Ikeja.

 Techpremier Media Limited. All rights reserved
magnifier