Cross-border payments have become a crucial aspect of the modern financial landscape, enabling individuals and businesses to transact seamlessly across borders. However, amidst the buzz surrounding global transactions, one significant challenge often overlooked is intra-African payments. Nnenna Nkata, the founder of Monirates, identified this gap in the market firsthand.
Nkata’s journey from Nigeria to Ghana for college and then to the UK for her master’s degree exposed her to the complexities of transferring money within Africa. She highlighted the struggle she faced as a student trying to send money between Ghana and Nigeria despite their close proximity. The limitations in digital payment options forced her to resort to carrying large sums of cash across borders—a risky and inconvenient practice that was far from ideal.
The intricacies of intra-African payments stem from various factors, including the presence of 42 different currencies across the continent and fragmented regulatory frameworks. Unlike regions like Europe with a unified currency or North America with fewer dominant currencies, Africa presents a patchwork of monetary systems that pose challenges for seamless cross-border transactions.
As Nkata delved deeper into the issue, she realized that existing fintech solutions were falling short when it came to facilitating direct transfers and quick settlements within Africa. This realization prompted her to pivot Monirates towards developing infrastructure that could support efficient money movement within the continent. By building their payment rails from scratch, Monirates aimed to address not just part but all aspects of intra-African transactions—collection, conversion, and payout.
In discussing Monirates’ approach to overcoming these challenges, Nkata emphasized the need for a comprehensive solution that goes beyond merely facilitating payments. While many players in the market focus on collecting funds or enabling outbound payments, Monirates set out to provide end-to-end services that ensure low latency, low costs, and secure settlements—an essential foundation for fostering sustainable intra-African trade relationships.
The company’s strategic shift towards serving business clients underscores its commitment to powering Africa’s SME economy through reliable payment solutions. By partnering with procurement platforms, logistics firms, and commerce networks for high-value transactions, Monirates aims to streamline cross-border flows and eliminate delays or reliance on informal channels.
Looking ahead, Monirates is exploring innovative avenues such as stablecoins to enhance its payment ecosystem further. By incorporating digital currencies like USDC and USDT into their offerings and settling transactions in local African currencies, they are pioneering new ways to bridge liquidity gaps across regions efficiently.
Despite the progress made by initiatives like PAPSS (Pan-African Payment and Settlement System) and AfCFTA (African Continental Free Trade Area), Nkata acknowledges that navigating diverse languages laws continues remains an ongoing challenge in expanding intra-African trade facilitation efforts effectively.
Monirates’ unwavering focus on addressing these complexities reflects its vision of becoming Africa’s premier payment engine—one that not only supports economic growth but also honors the interconnectedness of African nations through robust financial infrastructure. As Nkata aptly puts it:
“You can’t build African trade without African payments,”
underscoring the critical role played by fintech innovators in driving economic integration on a continental scale.
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