Mobile money in emerging markets includes microinsurance, microloans, microsavings and mobile money transfer.

This growth, according to the report, would be driven by the transition of mobile money vendors, such as M-PESA, to the PaaP (Payments-as-a-Platform) model.

This PaaP model enables mobile money vendors to offer their users access to third-party services such as eCommerce; creating additional revenue streams.

The research, Mobile Money in Emerging Markets: Segment Analysis, Vendor Strategies & Market Forecasts 2021-2026, identified PaaP as critical to increasing revenue for mobile money vendors, as smartphone adoption and user expectations grow.

It, therefore, recommended that mobile money vendors focus on building their ecosystems now by agreeing merchant partnerships to correctly leverage this opportunity.

The new research found that microloans would be the fastest-growing segment within mobile money, with growth of over 180 per cent over the next five years.

It identified microloans as a key way in which mobile money service providers can increase their revenue by delivering banking-like services.

Research co-author Damla Sat said “While microloans are, by their very nature, small-scale, they are growing rapidly in significance, by enabling users to access credit as financial inclusion rises. By offering these services to users, mobile money services can pre-empt competition from banks, while increasing their average revenue per user; creating a virtuous circle.”

The research found that Africa and the Middle East would dominate mobile money transaction values over the next five years; accounting for 56 per cent of the global emerging markets value by 2026.

It recommended that vendors in Africa focus on expanding sophisticated mobile money services, such as microinsurance and microsavings, in order to best address this rapidly growing opportunity.

In Ghana, mobile money transactions in the third quarter of 2021 reached more than 1.27 billion; and in 2020, the value of mobile money transactions in the country, as reported by the central bank, crossed GH¢500 billion, compared to GH¢78 billion five years prior.

In terms of linkages to payment platforms, Ghana now has the most successful interoperability platform that allows cross-network/platform transfers, plus all merchants, big and small, online and offline, are fast adopting digital payments as a culture. So, it is now almost a given that any merchant is willing and able to accept mobile money payments.

With regards to microloans, there are three main microloan products on the mobile money platform – XpressLoan from Ecobank, AhomkaLoan and QWIKLOAN, all of which are doing great lending millions to small businesses across the country. The challenges, however, has been a significant slack in repayment of those loans.