vritti
20
Changing Lives
September 2017
MNOs dominate mobile financial
service landscape in WAEMU
MNOs lead the mobile financial services market
in the WAEMU region. MNOs are best placed
to offer successful mobile money service due
to their huge customer base, expansive airtime
distribution network in both urban and rural
areas, free availability of mobile channels like
USSD and SMS, strong brand presence and
extensive marketing experience. Backed by
new-age technology platforms following the
fintech approach, the MNOs offered inno-
vative low-cost mobile financial services
reaching the unbanked. They cater to the large
number of financially excluded people not
served by banks.
Orange, Airtel, Onatel, Sotelma, MTN and
Moov are the dominant mobile money players
in the market. Orange Money is the largest
mobile money service in the region available
in 6 countries – Burkina Faso, Cote d’Ivoire,
Guinea Bissau, Mali, Niger and Senegal. It
has achieved scale in many countries (Figure 2).
Figure 2 : Orange Money Mali and Senegal - 2016 data
MAURITANIA
MALI
NIGER
SENEGAL
GUINEA-
BISSAU
GUINEA
BENIN
NIGERIA
COTE
D'IVOIRE
SIERRA
LEONE
LIBERIA
GHANA
CENTRAL AFRICAN
REPURLIC
TOGO
21.6 Turnover 3.5 Total
subscribers MILLION
MILLION Active
subscribers MILLION
142.4
MILLION Transactions
volume MILLION
2,175.8
BILLION Transactions
value 542.2
BILLION
26.2% Transactions
value /GDP 6.2%
BILLION
BURKINA
FASO
GAMBIA
3.5
BILLION
CAMEROON
EQUATORIAL
GUINEA
SAO TOME
&
PRINCIPE
GABON
CONGO
MILLION
1.6
44%
MALI
MNO's mobile money services are dominated
by basic transactional services like cash-in,
cash-out, money transfer, airtime top-up, bill
payments and merchant payments. Very few
MNOs have experimented with banking service
such as savings and loans. However, MNOs
are continuously innovating and launching
new services that are extending the use of
3.5
1.1
31%
63.9
SENEGAL
Source: Sonatel 2016 financial result
mobile money to include wider population.
International remittance is an apt example.
Multi-country MNOs have launched mobile
money based inter-country money transfer
services. For example, Orange has launched
direct money transfer between its Orange
Money customers in Cote d'Ivoire, Senegal,
Mali and Niger. Etisalat/Maroc Telecom