Two telcos, $1-trillion and two very different fintech bets
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MTN and Vodacom together processed just over $1-trillion in mobile money transactions in their most recent financial years, marking a milestone for Africa's telco-led fintech sector. Despite similar transaction volumes, the two operators are pursuing diverging strategies: MTN is building a standalone bank-tech vertical across 16 markets with lending and virtual card products, while Vodacom is concentrating on fewer markets and layering higher-margin services onto M-Pesa rails, anchored by its Safaricom stake in Kenya. Vodacom leads on revenue with R41.3-billion in total fintech revenue (including Safaricom), while MTN reported R30.3-billion. Emerging players like AI microlender Optasia and rand-pegged stablecoins (ZARP, ZAR Supercoin, Zaru) are positioning around the infrastructure these telcos have built, though mobile operators remain the dominant payment rail on the continent.
