the evolution of mobile money in sub-Saharan Africa

I remember as a kid, like clockwork, my father would bring me along on his adventures to the African market at the intersection of Brooklyn Blvd and Kentucky Ave. These expeditions—to a storefront teeming with supplies reminiscent of those back home—did not go as expected. We weren’t there to buy ingredients for the next meal; instead, my father was there to facilitate transactions that sent currency across international borders. Whether it was MoneyGram or Western Union, the intention was the same. The cashier would print a lengthy receipt, and before we were out the door, my father was already dialing 011. I’ll never forget the back-and-forth phone conversations he had with the recipients, whose lucky day depended on a good connection so they could grasp hold of the control number.

Today, like my father, I also participate in sending dollars across borders. 

However, my method for confirming a completed transaction is much simpler: I lie in bed, open an app, and press send.

The evolution of mobile money globally—and particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa—has been a wonder to witness and engage with. Although we have seen tremendous growth within the past decade, I believe we are still only at the onset of the transformational use cases that this digital revolution offers.

I’d like to take a moment to press rewind and examine the key milestones in this ecosystem so we can truly appreciate where innovation on this frontier is headed.

Shall we?

BCS African Foods

where pops & I frequented

By age 6, in 2006, I knew the five banks within a 2-mile radius of our Brooklyn Park apartment.

U.S. Bank was just 500 feet up the street (where I opened my first savings account with my pops). Inside Cub Foods, you'd find TCF Bank (now Huntington). Across the street, Wells Fargo, Bank of America, and Chase all vied for deposits. Although I had no money of my own, accessing any of them was effortless.

6,000 miles away, in Guiglo, Côte d'Ivoire, where I was born, this level of access was unimaginable in 2006. The scarcity of brick-and-mortar banks across regions in SSA contributed to the fact that only 1 in 5 families were considered banked before 2007.

Financial illiteracy, inadequate infrastructure, and geographic isolation deepened the gap in financial inclusivity.

Yet, as the saying goes, in the midst of every challenge lies great opportunity. 

In 2007, as mobile phone adoption surged globally and across the continent, the seeds of a revolution through digital financial services were planted. 

M-Pesa emerged as a game-changer—bridging the very gaps that once seemed insurmountable.