Close Menu
  • Homepage
  • News
  • Cloud & AI
  • ECommerce
  • Entertainment
  • Finance
  • Opinion
  • Podcast
  • Contact

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest technology news from TechFinancials News about FinTech, Tech, Business, Telecoms and Connected Life.

What's Hot

iPhone 17 Pro May Return To Aluminum Alloy Body

2025-07-16

LEPAS Debuts In South Africa 2026 To Redefine Premium SUVs

2025-07-16

Fuse Lit: SA’s U.S. Tech Bomb ‘Nears Detonation’

2025-07-16
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram
Trending
  • iPhone 17 Pro May Return To Aluminum Alloy Body
Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn WhatsApp RSS
TechFinancials
  • Homepage
  • News
  • Cloud & AI
  • ECommerce
  • Entertainment
  • Finance
  • Opinion
  • Podcast
  • Contact
TechFinancials
Home»Boardroom Games»How Many People Or Registered Accounts Are Using Mobile Money Worldwide
Boardroom Games

How Many People Or Registered Accounts Are Using Mobile Money Worldwide

Gugu LourieBy Gugu Lourie2022-03-30Updated:2022-03-31No Comments3 Mins Read
Share Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
mobile money
Mobile money in Africa. Image source: Equity Axis
Share
Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email Copy Link

Over the past decade, mobile money has expanded from a niche offering in a handful of markets to a mainstream financial service. Mobile money services is moving millions of households in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs) from the informal cash economy into a more inclusive digital economy.

In 2021, there were more than 1.35 billion registered mobile money accounts worldwide, a tenfold increase from 134 million in 2012.

This was revealed in the GSMA’s 10th annual ‘State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money’ published today.

“Year-on-year growth in new registrations continues, defying initial expectations that it would taper off,” according to the report.

The report’s authors further state mobile money customers are also more active users.
The proportion of accounts active on a 90-day basis has grown from 26% to 38% between 2012 and 2021, and from 20% to 26% for monthly (30-day) active accounts in the same time period.

With populations growing rapidly in most LMICs, mobile money markets are far from saturated, and demand for mobile financial services is likely to remain high among financially excluded and often marginalised populations, argued the authors.

“Despite progress in mobile money adoption, hundreds of millions of people in LMICs encounter barriers at every step of the mobile money journey, including mobile phone ownership (this is a particular barrier for women).

“Even among registered account holders, about one billion are not active on a monthly basis, representing an important opportunity for the industry to deepen financial inclusion and economic participation.

The annual GSMA Consumer Survey conducted in 10 LMICs in 2021 found that, among adult mobile owners who are aware of a mobile money service but do not have a mobile money account, some of the main structural barriers to account registration include: insufficient digital skills, unreliable mobile network, difficulties reading and writing, preference for cash, lack of trust in the system, lack of proper identification (ID) and unreliable electrical grids.

Awareness of mobile money services also constitutes an important barrier in a number of markets.

These diverse and complex barriers to adoption suggest that enabling equal access to these
services is not only the responsibility of mobile money providers, but also an array of other actors.

From delivering sufficient consumer education to improving energy access, all stakeholders along the financial inclusion journey have a role to play.

“As a more accessible and easy-to-use payment channel, mobile money has been able to overcome some of the barriers that might be experienced in the traditional financial sector.”

In Senegal, for instance, 71% of adults reported they had used mobile money in the last 30 days even though nearly half of them stated they had great difficulties reading and writing or were completely unable to read or write.

“This demonstrates that, with the right design and user education, mobile money can
overcome complex barriers to financial inclusion.”

In the coming years, the GSMA expects account growth to come from both long-established mobile money markets and markets where mobile money services are still nascent, especially South Asia and African countries such as Nigeria, Ethiopia and Angola.

For example, in 2021, Ethiopia saw the launch of a mobile network operator (MNO)-
led mobile money service, and the Central Bank of Nigeria granted Approvals in Principle to leading MNOs to run mobile money services in the country.”

Airtel Africa Angola Ethiopia financial services Fintech M-PESA Mobile money MoMo MTN Nigeria Orange Vodacom
Share. Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn Tumblr Email
Gugu Lourie
  • Website

Related Posts

Fuse Lit: SA’s U.S. Tech Bomb ‘Nears Detonation’

2025-07-16

US Denies Mcebisi Jonas’ Visa, Rejects Credentials As Ramaphosa’s Envoy

2025-07-15

Vodacom & NAVIC Use Cloud Tech To Combat Crime, Save Lives

2025-07-15

Takealot Expands Pickup Points At Pick n Pay For Shopper Convenience

2025-07-14

SA Tech Firms: Why This AI Case Could Change Everything

2025-07-10

Volvo SA Appoints Grant Locke As New Managing Director

2025-07-10

Vodacom Welcomes Approval For Maziv Stake After New Conditions

2025-07-08

Vodacom’s 40% Maziv Stake Deal Back On After New Agreement

2025-07-08

Dunstan Mlambo Right Choice To Shake Up Constitutional Court

2025-07-06
Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

DON'T MISS
Breaking News

LEPAS Debuts In South Africa 2026 To Redefine Premium SUVs

LEPAS will officially debut in South Africa in 2026, introducing a fresh perspective on what…

Dual Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Awards Fuel SA’s Scientific Revolution

2025-07-15

How Agri-Tech Is Powering South Africa’s Cannabis Boom

2025-07-15

Ithuba Challenges Lottery Licence Award

2025-07-14
Stay In Touch
  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • LinkedIn
OUR PICKS

Fuse Lit: SA’s U.S. Tech Bomb ‘Nears Detonation’

2025-07-16

US Denies Mcebisi Jonas’ Visa, Rejects Credentials As Ramaphosa’s Envoy

2025-07-15

Takealot Expands Pickup Points At Pick n Pay For Shopper Convenience

2025-07-14

DA Urges President: Fire Minister Nkabane Now – Open Letter

2025-06-25

Subscribe to Updates

Get the latest tech news from TechFinancials about telecoms, fintech and connected life.

About Us

TechFinancials delivers in-depth analysis of tech, digital revolution, fintech, e-commerce, digital banking and breaking tech news.

Facebook X (Twitter) Instagram YouTube LinkedIn WhatsApp Reddit RSS
Our Picks

iPhone 17 Pro May Return To Aluminum Alloy Body

2025-07-16

LEPAS Debuts In South Africa 2026 To Redefine Premium SUVs

2025-07-16

Fuse Lit: SA’s U.S. Tech Bomb ‘Nears Detonation’

2025-07-16
Recent Posts
  • iPhone 17 Pro May Return To Aluminum Alloy Body
  • LEPAS Debuts In South Africa 2026 To Redefine Premium SUVs
  • Fuse Lit: SA’s U.S. Tech Bomb ‘Nears Detonation’
  • Gwede Mantashe Named Acting Minister Of Police
  • Dual Harry Oppenheimer Fellowship Awards Fuel SA’s Scientific Revolution
TechFinancials
RSS Facebook X (Twitter) LinkedIn YouTube WhatsApp
  • Homepage
  • Newsletter
  • Contact
  • Advertise
  • Privacy Policy
  • About
© 2025 TechFinancials. Designed by TFS Media.

Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

Ad Blocker Enabled!
Ad Blocker Enabled!
Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors. Please support us by disabling your Ad Blocker.