Two major African payment companies have come together to tackle one of the continent’s biggest financial challenges. Onafriq, Africa’s largest digital payments gateway, and the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) launched a new cross-border payment service in Ghana on June 20, 2025.
The partnership brings together Onafriq’s massive network of over 500 million mobile wallets across 43 African markets with PAPSS’s centralized payment infrastructure. This collaboration aims to make sending money across African borders faster, cheaper, and more accessible for businesses and individuals.
Addressing Africa’s Payment Problems
Cross-border payments in Africa have long been expensive and slow. The average cost of sending remittances to Africa remains over 7%, far above the United Nations’ target of 3%. Business cross-border payment fees in Africa can reach almost 4%, compared to 1.6% in Europe.
These high costs stem from the reliance on foreign currencies like the US dollar or euro for transactions between African countries. Most cross-border payments have to be converted multiple times, creating additional fees and delays at each step.
The new service tackles these issues by allowing direct transactions between mobile wallets and bank accounts across borders. Banks partnering with PAPSS and Onafriq’s authorized fintech and mobile money providers in Ghana can now enable their customers to send and receive money without the traditional costly conversion process.
How the Service Works
The partnership leverages PAPSS’s infrastructure and regulatory framework to provide cross-border payment capabilities. PAPSS settles transactions in local African currencies, eliminating the need to convert to dollars or euros before swapping to the destination currency.
The African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) serves as the settlement entity, ensuring trusted and timely settlement between parties. This arrangement provides safeguards and efficiency that traditional cross-border payment methods often lack.
The service focuses primarily on small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and retail transactions. These segments have traditionally faced the biggest barriers in cross-border payments due to high minimum transaction amounts and complex procedures.
Six-Month Pilot Program
The Bank of Ghana has approved a six-month pilot program that will allow both companies to assess transaction flows, user adoption, and foreign exchange performance. During this period, they will also work to deliver better exchange rates and more accessible services to customers.
“We are excited to be taking another step in operationalizing our important partnership with PAPSS to bring this innovative cross-border payment solution to our users,” said Dare Okoudjou, Founder and CEO of Onafriq. “This service is not just about convenience; it brings people together and enhances economic activity between Ghana and the region.”
Mike Ogbalu III, CEO of PAPSS, added: “Today marks a significant milestone in our journey towards a more integrated financial landscape in Africa. Our partnership with Onafriq represents a commitment to empowering SMEs and individuals by simplifying cross-border transactions.”
Building on a Long Partnership
This launch represents the operationalization of a partnership that Onafriq and PAPSS established in 2022. The collaboration aims to promote intra-African cross-border trade and enhance financial inclusion across the continent.
The service will soon be available on mobile money and other fintech-based wallets, expanding access beyond traditional banking channels. This approach is particularly important in Africa, where mobile money accounts for 30% of the continent’s cross-border money transfers as of 2024.
Onafriq’s Growing Network
Formerly known as MFS Africa, Onafriq rebranded in November 2023 to reflect its expanded ambitions beyond mobile financial services. The company operates the largest digital payments hub on the continent, connecting over 1 billion mobile money wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 400,000 agents in Nigeria.
With 10 offices across Africa and additional locations in the UK, US, and China, Onafriq enables domestic and cross-border disbursements, card issuing and processing, agency banking, and treasury services. The company has raised $177 million in funding over nine rounds since its founding in 2003.
PAPSS’s Continental Mission
PAPSS was officially launched in Accra, Ghana, on January 13, 2022, making it available for public use. The system was developed by Afreximbank and the African Union as a key instrument for implementing the African Continental Free Trade Agreement (AfCFTA).
The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System enables instant or near-instant transfers of funds between originators in one African country and beneficiaries in another. By providing a common African market infrastructure, PAPSS addresses historic challenges of making payments across African borders.
Industry Impact
Africa’s cross-border payments market is projected to reach $1 trillion by 2035, with mobile money already playing a significant role in this growth. The continent’s fintech sector, while experiencing a funding decline of 45% in 2024 to $857 million, continues to innovate in addressing payment challenges.
The Ghana pilot represents a step toward greater financial integration across Africa. As African borders become less of a barrier to commerce, the continent moves closer to realizing the economic benefits of the AfCFTA, which aims to create a single market for goods and services across 54 African countries.
The success of this pilot could pave the way for similar services across other African markets, potentially transforming how businesses and individuals move money across the continent.
