MTN Eyes Nigeria’s $236 Billion Credit Market as MoMo Evolves Into a Financial Powerhouse
MTN Group is taking bold steps to transform its mobile money platform, MoMo, into one of Africa’s most influential financial services ecosystems, positioning itself to tap into Nigeria’s massive $236 billion credit gap while expanding its footprint in payments, lending, remittances, and merchant services.
The Johannesburg-based telecommunications giant is currently finalising the structural separation of its fintech businesses in Nigeria and Uganda, a strategic move that will pave the way for new investments, deeper partnerships, and accelerated growth across the continent’s rapidly evolving financial sector.
The restructuring is a crucial requirement for completing a minority investment agreement with Mastercard and potentially attracting additional strategic investors seeking exposure to Africa’s booming digital finance market.
MTN’s Fintech Ambitions Reach New Heights
Speaking during MTN Group’s Capital Markets Day, Chief Executive Officer Ralph Mupita highlighted the importance of carefully separating the fintech units without diminishing their value.
According to Mupita, MTN remains open to selling minority stakes of up to 30 percent in its fintech operations, although the company is not rushing toward a public listing.
The move underscores MTN’s growing confidence in the future of fintech and reflects a broader shift across Africa, where mobile money platforms are increasingly becoming essential financial infrastructure rather than simple payment tools.
Nigeria Emerges as the Ultimate Fintech Prize
At the heart of MTN’s strategy lies Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation and one of the continent’s most attractive fintech markets.
With a population exceeding 200 million people, a thriving informal economy, high levels of cash dependency, and millions of underserved businesses, Nigeria presents enormous opportunities for digital financial services.
However, regulatory limitations have prevented MTN from fully exploiting this potential. Its current licence framework restricts the company from offering certain financial products, including some lending services, international remittances, and advanced payment solutions.
These limitations have enabled fintech competitors such as OPay and PalmPay to gain significant market share in areas like digital payments, transfers, and agency banking.
Determined to close the gap, MTN has applied for Payment Solution Service Provider (PSSP) and Payment Terminal Service Provider (PTSP) licences through its Nigerian subsidiary, MoMo PSB.
If approved, the licences would allow MTN to expand its payment processing capabilities, build stronger merchant payment solutions, deploy and manage point-of-sale terminals, and reduce its reliance on third-party processors.
The applications are currently under review by the Central Bank of Nigeria, alongside regulatory assessments of the planned fintech business separation.
From Payments to Lending: MTN’s Next Big Opportunity
While payments remain a key revenue driver, MTN is increasingly focused on one of Africa’s largest untapped opportunities, credit.
MTN Group Fintech CEO Serigne Dioum revealed that the company intends to move beyond simply facilitating loans through third-party partners.
Instead, in markets where regulations permit, MTN plans to obtain licences that would enable it to lend directly to customers using its own balance sheet.
This transition would represent a significant evolution in the company’s business model.
Currently, mobile money operators generate revenue primarily from transaction fees, merchant services, remittances, and strategic partnerships. Direct lending would allow MTN to capture a larger portion of the financial value chain while helping address one of Africa’s biggest economic challenges: access to credit.
The opportunity is particularly significant in Nigeria.
Industry estimates suggest that nearly 80 percent of Nigerian micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises lack access to formal financing. Recent reports have valued the country’s MSME financing gap at approximately $236 billion.
For millions of traders, entrepreneurs, transport operators, and households, access to affordable credit can mean the difference between survival and growth.
For MTN, it could become a powerful new source of long-term revenue.
A Fintech Giant Processing Half a Trillion Dollars
MTN’s fintech ambitions are supported by impressive scale.
In 2025 alone, the company processed approximately $500.3 billion in transaction value across its mobile money platforms, handling over 23 billion transactions while serving nearly 70 million monthly active users.
The strong growth reflects increasing adoption of digital payments, remittances, merchant services, and other advanced financial products throughout MTN’s markets.
These numbers place MoMo among the largest digital financial ecosystems in Africa and explain why global investors are showing heightened interest.
As banking infrastructure remains limited across many African countries, mobile money platforms have become critical tools for financial inclusion, enabling millions of people to access financial services without traditional bank accounts.
Global Players Join the Race for Africa’s Financial Future
MTN’s fintech transformation is attracting attention from some of the world’s largest financial and technology companies.
Its partnership with Mastercard, announced in 2023, highlights growing international confidence in Africa’s digital finance sector.
The company is also collaborating with Ant Group’s Alipay to enhance the MoMo ecosystem, improve merchant services, and create a more sophisticated financial marketplace for consumers and businesses.
These partnerships reflect a broader global race to gain a foothold in Africa’s rapidly expanding fintech industry, where banks, telecom operators, payment networks, regulators, and technology firms are all competing for influence.
The ultimate prize is control over how Africans pay, borrow, save, transfer money, and conduct business in the digital economy.
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Airtel Intensifies the Competition
MTN’s expansion comes amid increasing competition from rival telecom operators.
Airtel Africa is preparing its Airtel Money business for a potential public listing that analysts believe could value the fintech arm at around $10 billion.
Although the IPO has been delayed until the second half of 2026 due to challenging market conditions, investor interest in African mobile money platforms continues to grow.
The comparison with Airtel Money places additional focus on the value embedded within MTN’s own fintech operations and strengthens the case for separating MoMo from the group’s traditional telecom business.
Regulatory Approval Will Shape the Future
Despite the enormous opportunities, MTN’s ambitions will largely depend on regulatory support.
Authorities across Africa remain cautious about telecom companies expanding into financial services, citing concerns around consumer protection, financial stability, data security, and market concentration.
In Nigeria, payment service banks were created primarily to promote financial inclusion rather than function as full commercial banks.
This makes MTN’s applications for additional licences especially important, as they would enable the company to expand beyond basic mobile money services into more profitable areas such as merchant payments, remittances, and lending.
Approval could significantly strengthen MTN’s competitive position against banks, payment processors, and fintech startups.
A Defining Moment for African Finance
As MTN advances its fintech transformation, the company is positioning itself at the centre of one of Africa’s most important financial revolutions.
Successful completion of the fintech separations in Nigeria and Uganda, combined with strategic investments, regulatory approvals, and stronger partnerships, could unlock a new era of growth for the telecom giant.
The road ahead is not without risks. Direct lending introduces exposure to loan defaults, regulatory oversight is intensifying, and competition across the sector continues to grow.
Yet MTN’s vision is clear.
The company no longer wants to be known solely as Africa’s largest telecommunications operator. It wants to become a major player in the movement of money across the continent.
In a region where cash still dominates, access to credit remains limited, and digital payments are growing at record speed, MTN’s next chapter could redefine the future of financial services in Africa.
