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MTN Momo's IPO, Tyme Bank's and more
July 22–26, 2024 | 6-minute read
Elly Ngoma
July 21, 2025
For banking & fintech leaders bridging global innovation
July 22–26, 2024 | 6-minute read
🔥 This Week’s Golden Nuggets
Stablecoins go mainstream in Africa: Visa and Yellow Card expand to 20 markets.
AI banking hits new highs: Revolut’s AI assistant drives 70% engagement surge.
Saudi Arabia bets big on African fintech: $500M poured into agritech and payments.
Regulatory shake-up: Nigeria tightens crypto rules, EU enforces AI transparency.
1. Visa & Yellow Card Bring Stablecoins to 20 African Markets
Why it matters: Stablecoins are cutting cross-border payment costs by 80% and settlement times from days to seconds in Africa’s $50B remittance market.
Player | Latest Move | Who They Are |
|---|---|---|
Visa (Global payments giant) | Scaled Yellow Card partnership to 20 African countries | Enables USD-backed stablecoin payouts via local mobile money. |
Expanded PYUSD to Kenya & Ghana | Targets Africa’s booming freelance economy. | |
cNGN (Nigeria’s CBDC hybrid) | $300M monthly volume | Central bank’s answer to crypto volatility. |
Be smart: Shift 10% of treasury ops to stablecoins—they’re now critical infrastructure, not just crypto hype.
2. AI Banking: Revolut’s Assistant Drives 70% Engagement
Revolut (UK neobank, 40M+ users) launched an AI Financial Coach:
Uses Anthropic’s Claude for personalized spending nudges.
70% of users engage weekly—2x higher than traditional banking apps.
Competitor moves:
→ Starling Bank (UK): AI-driven fraud detection cuts losses by 25%.
→ JPMorgan: Warns of AI “hallucinations” in loan approvals.
→ TymeBank (SA): Pilots AI credit scoring for unbanked SMEs.
Regulatory alert: EU AI Act now bans opaque AI financial advice.
3. Saudi Arabia Pours $500M into African Fintech
Saudi Vision 2030 fuels fintech bets:
$300M for PalmPay (Nigeria) to expand agency banking.
$150M in Apollo Agriculture (Kenya) for AI-driven loans.
$50M to Chipper Cash for cross-border stablecoin rails.
Market snapshots:
🇳🇬 Nigeria: Stablecoin adoption hits 65%—highest in Africa.
🇿🇦 South Africa: Digital banks now hold 12% of deposits.
🇪🇬 Egypt: CBDC pilot cuts gov’t payment delays by 90%.
⚖️ Policy Watch
Development | Impact |
|---|---|
Binance, KuCoin affected—$25B market at risk. | |
Banks must explain AI-driven loan rejections. | |
3% levy on fintech transactions—could slow growth. |
🚀 The Scoop
Flutterwave partners Token.io for open banking in 10 African markets.
MTN’s fintech arm hits $1B valuation—IPO plans ahead.
Stripe launches in Kenya—now supports M-Pesa payouts.
Worldcoin pauses ops in Kenya after data privacy outcry.
🌟 Startup Spotlight: Pezesha
Who: Kenyan SME lender using alternative credit scoring.
Edge: 89% approval rate for women-owned businesses.
Backers: Saudi’s Vision Ventures, Accion Venture Lab.
Lesson: Mobile wallet data > traditional credit checks in Africa.
👀 What to Watch
Nigeria’s crypto rules finalised—will exchanges flee?
Visa’s Africa stablecoin rollout—can it beat mobile money?
Revolut’s AI backlash risk—will regulators step in?
🧰 Toolkit
+ This
A Nigerian farmer paid suppliers in stablecoins via Yellow Card, bought solar panels with an AI-approved loan, and sold produce via Flutterwave’s open banking—Africa’s fintech stack in action. 🌍💸
Reply for our Saudi-Africa fintech investment report—12 slides of key trends.
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