But then here we are in 2026, with global cross-border payments now worth well over $190 trillion a year, and the average transfer still slower and more expensive than it has any right to be.

The irony is hard to miss. You can hire a developer in Nairobi before lunch, ship goods from Shenzhen by evening, and sign a contract over WhatsApp. 

But paying that same developer, supplier, or student on time can still take days, sometimes weeks, with fees stacked along the way.

We’ve seen founders plan cash flow around bank delays, and freelancers price in losses before the money even moves. That issue shows up in rent, inventory, and missed deadlines.

What is changing is not the need to move money, but who is fixing the situation. Banks are still arguing about processes built in the 1970s. The fintechs that are indispensable in 2026 are not arguing, they are rerouting, cutting out steps, locking rates upfront, settling in minutes instead of days, and building for people whose lives already cross borders, even when their banks do not.

This is a list of fintechs that are measurably reducing expenses, time, and uncertainty in how money moves across countries.

Some do it at scale, others do it with focus, but all of them are changing outcomes.

These are the fintechs making cross-border payments faster, cheaper, and harder to ignore in 2026.

1. Grey Finance

Grey Finance earns its place on this list because it understands that the future of work is borderless, but money movement is not. 

In 2026, that gap is where we find value. Grey has built itself directly inside it. By expanding beyond Africa into Latin America and Southeast Asia, and wiring itself into local payment ecosystems through partners like dLocal, Grey is going beyond adding countries to a map. 

It is redesigning how emerging-market talent gets paid, spends, and plans across borders, without losing value to intermediaries.

What makes Grey unique is not speed alone, but its vision. The platform is built for people whose income and lives span currencies, including freelancers, remote workers, founders, and SMEs earning globally but spending locally. 

Multi-currency accounts, wallet-to-bank transfers, and transparent FX pricing are the foundation here. In markets where traditional remittance fees are still between 7 and 10%, Grey’s model materially changes results. 

Faster settlement means better cash flow. Lower fees mean real income retained. For millions of users, that difference is economic.

By the end of 2025, Grey had done the hard work, regulatory coverage across key corridors, compliance with FinCEN and FINTRAC, and infrastructure capable of supporting payments to more than 170 countries via ACH and SWIFT. 

Add a growing SME product, Grey Business, and ecosystem initiatives like its support for women-led companies, and the reason it’s among game-changing fintechs in 2026 becomes more obvious. 

Grey is building the default financial layer for a generation that no longer thinks in national terms. In 2026, that focus makes it unavoidable.

2. Oneremit

Oneremit is a game-changer precisely because it refuses to dramatise payments. In an industry obsessed with speed brags and attractive dashboards, Oneremit chose certainty. 

For African businesses trying to operate globally, that choice is more important than anything else. By 2025, the platform had already processed over $60 million in transactions, enabling SMEs in Nigeria to send money to more than 100 countries with clarity on cost, timing, and compliance. 

With long delays and guesswork known as a challenge within this market, that reliability is disruptive.

Under the leadership of Hammed Afenifere, Oneremit has focused on infrastructure rather than spectacle. The concierge model shows a deep understanding of its users, businesses that care less about interfaces and more about knowing their payments will land, cleanly and compliantly. 

In reducing multi-step banking chains into a single, controlled process, Oneremit has cut settlement times from days to minutes. Fees drop. Planning becomes possible. Growth stops being hostage to payment friction.

Looking into 2026, Oneremit’s positioning becomes even more interesting. Its investments in smart routing, compliance-first operations, and selective use of blockchain rails put it in prime position for the next phase of cross-border payments, hybrid systems where automation, stable liquidity, and regulatory confidence coexist. 

While others go after novelty, Oneremit is building products that scale quietly. In payments, quiet is not a weakness, it’s how trust compounds. And trust, in 2026, is the real currency.

3. Pay4Me (Radius)

Pay4Me is among game-changing fintechs making cross-border payments faster and cheaper in 2026 because it focuses on a category most fintechs underestimate, and that is payments that cannot afford to fail. 

Tuition deadlines, visa fees, immigration charges, these are not flexible transactions. A delay does not mean inconvenience but can mean lost admission, expired status, or derailed plans. 

Built from the lived experience of its founder, Pay4Me addresses a problem traditional banks and generic remittance apps were never designed to solve, and that’s fast, compliant, cross-border payments for global mobility.

Through specialisation in education and immigration workflows, Pay4Me has achieved what broad platforms struggle with, same-day or near-instant settlement for highly regulated, consumer-to-institution payments. 

Allowing users to pay in local currencies removes a major limitation for students across Africa, where access to foreign exchange is still constrained. The result goes beyond speed to dignity, users meet deadlines without begging banks or agents for exceptions.

By late 2025, Pay4Me had onboarded over 100,000 users, processed more than $11 million in volume, and supported payments to over 1,000 institutions worldwide. 

Backing from programmes like Techstars and Village Capital helped strengthen its infrastructure, but the main focus is its evolution into Radius, a broader financial mobility platform offering accounts, cards, and credit-building tools. 

In 2026, cross-border movement will continually increase and Pay4Me is going beyond just helping people pay fees, to becoming the financial starting point for citizens globally.

4. Juicyway

Juicyway is attacking the limitations in African cross-border payments, especially in terms of liquidity. Foreign exchange scarcity, opaque pricing, and slow settlement are not edge cases, they are the system. 

Juicyway’s liquidity-first marketplace directly matches FX demand and supply in real time, reducing dependence on correspondent banks and compressing settlement cycles that typically stretch two to five days down to minutes.

The scale it achieved is what makes it impossible to ignore in 2026. Operating largely in stealth until late 2024, Juicyway had already processed over $1.3 billion in FX volume across more than 25,000 transactions, without a public app or aggressive marketing. 

By late 2025, monthly transaction volumes were reported to be over $300 million, with a client base of 12,000+ businesses spanning importers, exporters, logistics firms, and FMCG operators. Retention above 85% points to the fact that users are not just testing the platform, but building around it.

What strengthens Juicyway’s long-term position is discipline. The company has maintained reported profitability, secured a Canadian MSB licence, and partnered with regulated banks and stablecoin infrastructure providers to support USD, CAD, GBP, and EUR corridors. 

With $3 million in pre-seed funding earmarked for API expansion and geographic growth into Francophone and Southern Africa, Juicyway is building itself into a core FX infrastructure layer. In 2026, with African trade straining under currency volatility, that build becomes essential.

5. Kuda

Kuda makes this list because of scale, and what it is now doing with it. Few African fintechs move as much money as Kuda does. 

In Q1 2025 alone, the digital bank processed ₦14.3 trillion (approximately $9.3 billion) in transaction volume and handled over 300 million transactions across its platform. 

That level of throughput changes the conversation. Cross-border payments are now a natural extension of daily banking behaviour.

After years of prioritising user growth, Kuda’s pivot towards sustainability has enhanced its international play. In rebuilding its remittance stack in-house and relaunching its multi-currency wallet in 2025, the company reduced third-party dependency and improved margins. 

With over 7 million users, Kuda is now converting scale into revenue, recording more paid transfers than free ones and projecting 40% revenue growth driven largely by cross-border and high-engagement services.

Looking to 2026, Kuda’s advantage is control. Licences secured in markets such as Canada and Tanzania prepare it for deeper diaspora corridors, while products like overdrafts, which saw ₦16.4 billion issued in Q1 2025, strengthen customer stickiness. 

In combining everyday banking, lending, and international transfers under one roof, Kuda is collapsing what used to be separate financial journeys. That convergence is exactly how cross-border payments become cheaper, faster, and habitual.

6. Cashwise Finance

Cashwise Finance is earlier-stage, but its numbers already show vision backed by execution. In its first year of operation, the platform processed over 80,000 transactions, moving more than $3 million and ₦15 billion across borders. 

For a newly launched product focused on testing, feedback, and infrastructure hardening, those figures reveal early trust, the most difficult currency to earn in payments.

Cashwise spent 2025 tightening the engine. Real-time iteration, edge-case handling, and compliance workflows took precedence over aggressive expansion. That focus shows in its product direction, with multi-currency wallets, faster settlement outside SWIFT rails, and partnerships aimed at ensuring last-mile delivery rather than just outbound transfers. 

For freelancers and SMEs who rely on predictable cash flow, minutes are important, and Cashwise is building for that.

What makes Cashwise one to watch in 2026 is direction. The company is moving from proof to scale with a clear philosophy, and that is, people should stay connected to their money wherever life takes them. 

With foundations laid and volumes already validating demand, the next phase is expansion, into new corridors, deeper SME tooling, and a broader payments ecosystem. In cross-border finance, that sequence, trust first, growth second, is often what separates survivors from leaders.

7. Verto

Among the game-changing fintechs making cross-border payments faster and cheaper in 2026 is Vert, a Fintech that operates where cross-border payments are hardest and most valuable; high-value, time-sensitive trade flows in emerging markets. 

In 2025, the company made a transition from being a specialist FX provider to becoming infrastructure.

It opened a Lagos office to anchor West African operations, expanded its B2B FX marketplace to cover over 190 countries and nearly 50 currencies, and doubled down on regulatory engagement. 

These were more about owning liquidity and trust in markets where both are scarce.

Looking at the economics, connecting directly to local payment rails, Verto dramatically undercuts legacy banking expenses. A frequently noted comparison shows a 2 million ZAR transaction costing roughly R10,000 via Verto versus over R76,000 through traditional banks, a difference that materially changes margins for importers and exporters. 

Near-instant, 24/7 settlement replaces the multi-day delays of SWIFT, while rate locks help businesses manage volatility in currencies like NGN, KES, ZAR, and XOF. For companies operating on thin margins, this is way beyond optimisation.

What makes Verto especially relevant in 2026 is scale plus embed-ability. In 2025, it launched the Verto Atlas Suite, an API-first embedded finance product that allows other platforms to plug directly into its rails. 

Expansion into the UAE, licensed under the Dubai Financial Services Authority, strengthened trade corridors linking Africa, the Middle East, and Asia, regions that collectively process tens of billions of dollars in annual trade flows. 

With a growing team of 200+ staff, on-the-ground presence in Lagos, and hybrid infrastructure spanning fiat and emerging rails, Verto is moving money and becoming part of how emerging-market trade works.

8. FlashChange

FlashChange is one of the game-changing fintechs making cross-border payments faster and cheaper in 2026 because it is silently aligning with how cross-border payments are actually evolving. 

In 2025, the platform moved beyond being a niche digital asset trader and launched FlashChange V2, consolidating crypto transactions, gift cards, bill payments, airtime, and data into a single system. 

The strategic focus is that users do not want separate tools for value storage, spending, and cross-border movement. They want speed, clarity, and reliability, instantly.

What differentiates FlashChange in 2026 is its focus on real-world utility rather than speculation. By leveraging blockchain rails for settlement, the platform avoids the multi-hop delays and high fees associated with traditional banking. 

Transactions clear near-instantly, and costs are materially lower because intermediaries are stripped out. In regions where inflation, FX scarcity, and payment friction are daily occurrences, that speed is more important than ideology. This is crypto used as infrastructure, not stories.

Trust and compliance are where FlashChange has been careful. In September 2025, the company joined the Stakeholders in Blockchain Technology Association of Nigeria (SIBAN), revealing alignment with emerging regulatory and security standards. 

With cross-border payments across Africa edge toward a trillion-dollar opportunity, platforms that can safely bridge digital assets and everyday payments will be essential. 

FlashChange’s hybrid positioning, between traditional finance and blockchain-enabled settlement, places it squarely in the flow of where payments are heading in 2026.

9. LemFi

LemFi stands out here because it has moved faster than most, and stayed licensed while doing so. By 2025, the company had evolved from a focused remittance app into a multi-product financial platform serving diaspora communities across Africa, Europe, North America, and Asia. 

Backed by a $53 million Series B, LemFi expanded to 27+ send-from markets, added Asian corridors including India, Pakistan, and China, and built infrastructure capable of handling over $1 billion in monthly transaction volume.

The platform’s differentiation is not just low or zero fees, but velocity and control. A large share of transfers settle instantly or within minutes, supported by partnerships with local banks and mobile money operators. 

LemFi’s acquisition of Pillar in mid-2025 brought about credit products for immigrants, a segment usually excluded from traditional financial systems, while new services like LemFi Credit reportedly attracted over 50,000 applications in early rollout. This is remittance evolving into financial inclusion at scale.

What places LemFi strongly for 2026 is independence. In securing its own European licences, including in Ireland, the company reduced reliance on third-party sponsors for operations in the UK and Germany. 

New partnerships, such as enabling instant transfers to tens of millions of mobile wallet users in recipient markets, deepen last-mile delivery. With active user rates reported around 70% among early adopters, LemFi has proven that speed, pricing, and trust can coexist. In a sector still taken over by slow incumbents, that combination is what turns growth into leadership.

10. Comviva

Comviva earns its place on this list not because it is new, but because of the scale it operates at, and what it proved in 2025. 

By October 2025, Comviva’s mobiquity Pay platform was processing over $400 billion in transactions annually, spanning 55+ countries and supporting billions of transactions each year across digital wallets, remittances, and merchant payments. 

The company’s defining moment came in 2025 when it won the IBS Intelligence Global FinTech Innovation Award for “Best-in-Class Cross-Border Payments” for its deployment with Global Money Exchange Company (GMEC) in Oman. 

The Global Pay Oman app, powered by mobiquity Pay, transformed a traditional remittance service into a full digital wallet and payments platform, combining international transfers, local payments, bill pay, and FX services in one interface. 

This “super app” approach reduced settlement times, cut operational costs, and materially improved transaction success rates through AI-led payment orchestration.

Why Comviva becomes especially important in 2026 is replication. With an estimated 24% share of the global mobile money market, its technology already underpins financial services for millions of users in emerging markets. 

The Oman deployment now serves as a blueprint for rolling out similar cross-border wallet ecosystems across Africa, Asia, and the Middle East. With regulators pushing for faster, cheaper, and more inclusive payment systems, Comviva’s ability to deliver real-time, 24/7 cross-border payments at scale positions it more as infrastructure.

11. Clea

Clea targets one of Africa’s most painful and under-served problems, which is paying international suppliers reliably as an importer. 

In late 2025, the company officially launched from stealth after a pilot phase that processed over $4 million in cross-border transactions, validating demand for a faster, more transparent alternative to traditional bank wires and informal FX channels.

Unlike consumer remittance apps, Clea is built for trade. It uses blockchain-based settlement rails to allow African businesses to convert local currency, including naira, into USD and pay suppliers directly, usually clearing transactions same day or next day, rather than waiting several days through SWIFT. 

Payments are executed in the importer’s own name, reducing compliance red flags and trust gaps that frequently delay shipments or trigger reversals in international trade.

What makes Clea one to watch in 2026 is focus and timing. Africa faces an estimated $120 billion trade finance gap, with SMEs locked out of FX access by slow banks, high spreads, and opaque processes. In 2025, Clea established active corridors to key import hubs, the United States, China, and the UAE, and launched iOS and Android apps designed specifically for traceable, business-grade payments. 

The company has grown in a bootstrapped, capital-efficient way, prioritising unit economics and real usage over hype.

Clea is scaling across Nigeria’s 36 states and expanding payout routes beyond West Africa in 2026, it is not building itself as a wallet, but as a payments layer embedded directly into supply chains.

This launch aligns with Oman’s national digital transformation vision and reinforces GMEC’s commitment to delivering innovative, secure, and inclusive digital financial solutions for daily life.

For this initiative, GMEC has partnered with Comviva, a global leader in digital transformation solutions. Comviva is a subsidiary of Tech Mahindra and a member of the Mahindra Group.

Speaking on the occasion, Sheikh Sulaiman Abdulmalik Abdullah Al Khalili, chairman, global money exchange said,

“The Global Pay App enables secure and efficient local and international payment transactions. He added that the platform is PCI-DSS certified, underscoring GMEC’s commitment to the highest standards of payment security and data protection. We believe that the Mobile application will be widely used by the Omani Nationals and expatriates.”

Commenting on the launch, Rajesh Chandiramani, CEO, Comviva said,

“We are delighted to accelerate Global Money Exchange’s digital transformation journey with mobiquity Pay- our scalable, cloud-ready digital payments platform built to support rapid growth and seamless expansion. Global Pay exemplifies our commitment to empowering financial institutions across the Middle East to deliver world-class digital experiences that drive financial inclusion.”

Mr. Subromoniyan K S, managing director, Global Money Exchange stated,

“customers can conveniently pay utility bills and educational fees without the need for a bank account, thereby supporting broader financial inclusion.” He further noted that the platform enables merchants to accept QR-based payments from customers of any bank or service provider in Oman, ensuring full interoperability across the payment’s ecosystem.”

Mr. Sonam Dorje, general manager, Global Money Exchange said,

“The Global Pay App is supported by a comprehensive customer support framework. Customers can visit any of our branches across Oman for assistance or contact a dedicated customer support helpline for prompt resolution of queries.”

Mr. Madhusoodanan R, executive advisor to the Board, Global Money Exchange stated,

“Global Money Exchange is the first money exchange company in Oman to have received a Payment Service Provider (PSP) license, and that this initiative strongly supports the Sultanate’s vision of a cashless economy. He further mentioned that GMEC will, in a phased manner, introduce additional features under Global Pay for the continued benefit of its customers.”

The press meet was attended by senior officials from Global Money Exchange, including Sheikh Ahmed Abdulmalik Abdullah Al Khalili, Sheikh Azzan Abdulmalik Abdullah Al Khalili Mr. Rohit Nair, Mr. Simranjit Singh and Mr. Kingshuk Debnath and representatives from Comviva, including; Rajesh Fondekar, Head of Product Management for FinTech Solutions; Sadiq Pasha, VP Solutions & Delivery Management for FinTech Solutions and Nitin Vyas, Senior Director Solution Sales for the Enterprise Business.

The recognition was awarded for its deployment with Global Money Exchange Co. LLC (GMEC), Oman, a leading global money transfer operator.

The recognition highlights how Comviva’s mobiquity Pay is helping shape a modern cross-border payment ecosystem that stretches far beyond conventional remittance services.

Deployed as a white label Wallet Platform and launched as Global Pay Oman App, it fulfils GMEC’s dual vision, positioning itself as an innovative payment service provider while digitally extending its core money transfer business.

The solution allows GMEC to offer international money transfers alongside seamless forex ordering and other services.

These capabilities sit alongside a broad suite of everyday financial services, including bill and utility payments, merchant transactions, education-related payments, and other digital conveniences – all delivered through one unified experience.

mobiquity Pay is helping GMEC diversify its service portfolio, improve operational efficiency and strengthen customer retention in the highly competitive cross-border payments market.

By integrating multiple payment use cases within a unified digital wallet, mobiquity Pay has enabled a more efficient, customer-centric and scalable cross-border payments model.

Speaking on the occasion, Subromoniyan K.S., managing director at Global Money Exchange Co. said,

“This award is a testament to Oman’s accelerating digital transformation and our commitment to reshaping how cross-border payments serve people and businesses across the Sultanate. By partnering with Comviva and bringing the Global Pay Oman Super App, we have moved beyond traditional remittance services to create a truly inclusive and future-ready financial ecosystem. This innovation is not only enhancing convenience and transparency for our customers but is also supporting Oman’s broader vision of building a digitally empowered economy.”

Commenting on the recognition, Rajesh Chandiramani, chief executive officer at Comviva said,

“Cross-border payments are becoming a daily necessity, not a niche service, particularly for migrant and trade-linked economies. This recognition from IBS Intelligence validates our focus on building payment platforms that combine global reach with local relevance, operational resilience and a strong user experience. The deployment with Global Money Exchange Co. demonstrates how mobiquity Pay enables financial institutions to move beyond remittances and deliver integrated digital services at scale.”

Recognizing Comviva’s pivotal role in advancing global remittance innovation, Nikhil Gokhale, director – Research & Digital Properties, IBS Intelligence, said,

“The deployment of mobiquity Pay for GMEC showcases how scalable, API-driven digital wallet platforms can transform cross-border payments into seamless, value-rich experiences. By integrating remittances, bill payments, forex services, and AI-powered engagement into a unified Super App, Comviva has reimagined customer journeys and operational agility. This Best-in-Class cross-border payments win stands as a testament to Comviva’s excellence in enabling financial institutions to compete and grow in a digitally convergent world.”

The IBS Intelligence Global FinTech Innovation Awards recognise technology-led initiatives that demonstrate strong program vision, execution excellence, customer impact and long-term value creation. Winners are selected following a rigorous global evaluation process across banks, financial institutions and technology providers.

The collaboration will focus on accelerating worldwide enterprise adoption and monetisation of Network APIs through NGAGE.ai, Comviva’s flagship SaaS-based platform for programmable communications and Network intelligence.

The partnership combines Comviva’s NGAGE.ai platform and enterprise onboarding expertise with Aduna’s global operator consortium.

This unified approach provides enterprises with secure, scalable access to network intelligence while enabling telcos to monetise network capabilities efficiently.

Anthony Bartolo, CEO, Aduna, added,

“The next wave of enterprise innovation will be powered by seamless access to network intelligence. By integrating Comviva’s NGAGE.ai platform with Aduna’s global federation of operators, we are enabling enterprises to innovate consistently across markets with standardised, high-performance Network APIs. This collaboration enhances the value chain for operators and gives enterprises the confidence and agility needed to launch new services, reduce fraud, and deliver more trustworthy customer experiences worldwide.”

Speaking on the partnership, Rajesh Chandiramani, CEO at Comviva, said,

“As enterprises accelerate their shift toward real-time, intelligence-driven operations, Network APIs will become foundational to digital transformation. With NGAGE.ai and Aduna’s global ecosystem, we are creating a unified and scalable pathway for enterprises to adopt programmable communications at speed and at scale. This partnership strengthens our commitment to helping telcos monetise network intelligence while enabling enterprises to build differentiated, secure, and future-ready digital experiences.”

NGAGE.ai is a SaaS-based, one-of-a-kind platform that simplifies how enterprises consume Communication and Network APIs.

It eliminates the need for separate infrastructure investment, provides instant access, and delivers measurable transparency in usage. Comviva’s NGAGE.ai enables seamless enterprise onboarding by allowing organisations to start consuming Network APIs from day-one without upfront platform investments.

It offers services for enterprise needs like friction-less login, identity verification, fraud detection, and KYC, supported by a quarterly release plan for evolving enterprise requirements.

The platform also ensures full transparency through real-time API consumption, usage, and analytics dashboards for enterprises.

The partnership is further strengthened by Comviva’s proven leadership in the global digital payments and digital lending ecosystem, sectors that will be among the biggest adopters of Network APIs.

According to the GSMA Mobile Money Report 2024, Comviva holds a 24% share of the global mobile money market, processing over 7.5 billion transactions annually with transaction values exceeding USD 400 billion.

Its AI-powered digital lending platform, Yabx, is also one of the fastest-growing alternate credit infrastructures across Africa, the Middle East, South-East Asia, and Latin America.

As banks and financial institutions increasingly rely on real-time identity, fraud, and risk intelligence, Comviva’s scale and credibility in digital finance position NGAGE.ai as a natural enabler for the next wave of API-driven financial innovation.

The NGAGE.ai platform is already active across 40+ countries, integrated with 100+ operators, and processing over 250 billion transactions annually for more than 7,000 enterprise customers.

With its extensive global deployment, NGAGE.ai is positioned as one of the most scalable and trusted platforms for API-led network intelligence adoption.

Comviva reported, processing over 7.5 billion transactions, with total value of transactions crossing USD 400 billion annually, a value surpassing the GDP of Finland.

According to the GSMA Mobile Money Report 2024, Comviva commands an impressive 24% share of the global mobile money market, reaffirming its position as one of the world’s most trusted and widely deployed digital financial platforms.

Built for the next era of digital payments, Comviva’s fintech platforms deliver AI-led, cloud-native digital payments experience – which is secure, scalable, and frictionless across a wide financial ecosystem.

The fintech capabilities of Comviva include Payment orchestration, tokenization, mobile wallets, QR codes, and USSD-based payments, which converge to deliver seamless and real-time transactions for individuals, businesses, and governments, from everyday retail payments to large-scale social and government disbursements.

Speaking on the milestone, Srinivas Nidugondi, EVP and chief operating officer, FinTech solutions at Comviva, said, 

“This achievement underscores Comviva’s unwavering commitment to enabling inclusive, intelligent, and secure financial experiences at scale. At Comviva, we are not just processing payments, we are driving economic growth, fostering financial inclusion, and helping transform how billions of people engage with digital finance globally.”

With 80+ deployments across more than 55+ countries, Comviva continues to redefine digital payments by ensuring agility, reliability, compliance, and rapid deployment in an ever-evolving digital economy.

Trusted by large digital merchants, E-commerce players, telecom operators, financial institutions, and FinTechs, Comviva is shaping the future of payments with AI-driven innovation and user-centric design.

This strategic leadership announcement marks a significant milestone in the company’s Comviva 2.0 journey, aimed at accelerating market growth, deepening customer engagement, and scaling innovation in a rapidly evolving digital ecosystem. All product units will now report into Manish.

Manish will spearhead the transformation of Comviva’s product portfolio by integrating AI/Agentic and next-generation technologies, while fostering stronger cross-functional synergy across product lines. He will also focus on enhancing organizational capabilities for business growth through superior customer experiences and value creation.

“We are thrilled to welcome Manish to the Comviva family” said Rajesh Chandiramani, chief executive officer at Comviva. “His deep industry expertise and transformative leadership will strengthen our ability to execute with agility, drive stronger cross-functional alignment, and propel our customer-centricity vision forward. I am confident that Manish’s appointment will be pivotal in translating our strategic goals into impactful outcomes for our clients globally.”

A seasoned techno-business leader, Manish brings over 30 years of cross-industry experience spanning telecom, manufacturing, and BFSI.

Over the past two decades, he has played multiple leadership roles at Tech Mahindra including business management, technology transformation, engineering, sales, consulting, turnkey outsourcing, mergers & acquisitions, and cybersecurity.

Most recently, he served as Global Practice Head – Telecom at Tech Mahindra, where he was instrumental in repositioning the company’s telecom strategy, developing next-generation AI, SaaS and Data driven solutions, leading global presales for large transformation deals across the globe, and working closely with top-tier Telecom clients of Tech Mahindra to drive business outcome transformation.

On his appointment, Manish Agrawal said,

“I am excited to join Comviva at a transformative point to deliver credible customer experiences through it’s “AI First and SaaS Ready” innovative software technology platforms and to deliver best customer-experiences for our global customers. I look forward to working with Comviva senior leadership to enable our hyper growth, unlock new business transformation opportunities with the strength of our innovative technology platforms, and to deliver world’s best end customer experiences to our global clients.”

Comviva is strongly investing in progressing its strategic vision based on new market expansion and deeper client relationships in an accelerating digital economy.

It is also focusing on uplifting organizational capability & structure and strategic partnerships as an enabler to its growth strategy.

• Orange Money Burkina Faso upgrades to Next-Generation mobiquity Pay leading a revenue growth driven by Comviva
• The upgraded platform is driving the launch of innovative products and services, enabling an agile response to business needs, and accelerate time-to-market

Orange, a key player in Burkina Faso’s mobile money landscape, today announced the successful upgrade of its mobile money platform to Comviva’s next-generation mobiquity Pay.

This strategic enhancement aims to foster innovation and ensure seamless service delivery for Orange Money users in Burkina Faso.

The advanced platform will empower Orange to rapidly scale its payment services while ensuring smooth integration within the broader ecosystem.

With an open architecture and API-first approach, the platform enhances flexibility and interoperability.

Additionally, its advanced security features—including robust authentication and authorization modules, as well as session management capabilities—strengthen fraud prevention measures, ensuring a secure environment for Orange Money users.

Christophe Baziemo, chief executive officer at Orange Money Burkina Faso, commented on the partnership with Comviva, stating,

“Orange Money is one of our key growth drivers, contributing significantly to economic and social development in Burkina Faso. We are particularly impressed by Mobiquity Pay’s microservices architecture, open design, and API-first philosophy, which will enable us to significantly expand the Orange Money ecosystem in the region and provide disruptive services to our customers.”

Rajesh Chandiramani, chief executive officer at Comviva added,

“For over a decade, Comviva has been a trusted partner to Orange, managing the design and technical operations of their platform. Recognizing the evolving landscape of mobile money, Orange’s decision to upgrade to mobiquity Pay reflects its commitment to staying ahead. Comviva’s successful migration leading revenue growth approach, leveraging our extensive experience in large-scale and complex migrations, has successfully completed over 30 transitions in the past decade. This upgrade, the first of its kind at this scale in the region, paves the way for transformative advancements in digital payments. We are thrilled to continue our partnership with Orange on their digitization journey. The extensibility, configurability, and low-code features of mobiquity Pay will enable them to launch new services at an accelerated pace.”

The new platform represents a state-of-the-art, cloud-native solution offering a comprehensive suite for digital money, wallets, and payments.

Its robust and scalable architecture ensures a secure and user-friendly experience, while enhanced modularity facilitates faster time-to-market for new services.

The true-fixed cost model guarantees seamless business continuity without unforeseen expenses, supported by a culturally aligned, bilingual talent pool with deep domain expertise.

This strategy is further strengthened by active leadership involvement and a technologically advanced product with best-in-class technical and functional architecture, ensuring successful deployment and exceptional performance.

The timing of this leadership transition coincides with Comviva’s significant milestone of completing 25 years in business.

As the company marks this achievement, it reaffirms its commitment to advancing as a global leader in Intelligent Software Platforms, embarking on a journey characterized by innovation and excellence.

Rajesh steps into this pivotal role following the retirement of Manoranjan ‘Mao’ Mohapatra, who concluded his remarkable tenure with the company at the end of May 2024. Following his retirement, Mao will continue to serve on the Comviva Board as a Non-Executive Director.

Rajesh brings to Comviva an impressive track record of over three decades, marked by his leadership in spearheading businesses and initiatives across a spectrum of organizations. Before joining Comviva, Rajesh held senior leadership roles at Tech Mahindra, where he served as the Business Unit Head for strategic markets spanning the UK, Europe, Middle East, Africa, Asia Pacific, Japan, and India within the Communications, Media & Entertainment (CME) Vertical. His leadership extended to steering the Global Digital Business, where he oversaw transformative initiatives in Cloud, Data and Analytics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), Cybersecurity, and Blockchain technologies for Tech Mahindra.

Rajesh’s strategic acumen also propelled growth as he led the Strategic Business Unit of APAC Enterprise business, driving significant expansion across various verticals.

Notably, his five-year tenure as the head of the Europe business for Tech Mahindra played a transformative role in enhancing enterprise and telecom businesses across European countries, solidifying his reputation as a visionary leader.

Welcoming Rajesh, Atul Soneja, Chairman of the Board at Comviva, said, “Rajesh’s appointment as CEO marks a strategic transition for Comviva, reflecting our commitment to sustained growth and innovation. With his extensive experience and visionary leadership, we are confident in his ability to steer Comviva towards new heights. Under his guidance, we look forward to further strengthening our position as a global leader in customer experience and data monetization solutions, delivering unparalleled value to our clients and stakeholders.”

Commenting on his appointment, Rajesh Chandiramani said, “I am extremely thrilled to assume this leadership responsibility at Comviva. We are living in an exciting digital era marked by unprecedented growth and opportunities. I am looking forward to driving impactful change and harnessing the power of digital platforms and technology to elevate Comviva to extraordinary heights. Our mission is clear, to deliver unmatched value and pioneer a new phase of digital excellence for our clients and stakeholders. I deeply appreciate the Comviva board for entrusting me with this opportunity to lead such a dynamic company”

Before Tech Mahindra, Rajesh was the Global Sales Officer (GSO) at Capgemini and has an impressive track record across multinationals like BCGI, Comverse, Tata, Global Telesystems, and Hughes Network Systems. He holds a bachelor’s degree in Engineering (Electronics and Telecommunications) and a master’s degree in Marketing Management from the University of Mumbai. He has also been part of the management development program at Harvard Business School (HBS) and Ross Business School, Michigan University.

Comviva’s Low-Code/No-Code composable platform is an extension of its existing mobiquity platform and shall enable Financial Institutions, including Banks, FinTechs, and Digital Wallet providers to revolutionize the development landscape.

The new platform will help Financial Institutions to quickly adjust to market shifts, regulations, and evolving customer demands.

With the ability to visually construct user journeys and workflows, alongside seamless integration capabilities with third-party systems, this platform promises to accelerate innovation and streamline operations. It will enable rapid adaptation to emerging requirements while the swift launch of new features will significantly curtail time-to-market.

Also, with the potential for a 30%-40% reduction in deployment time, it will lower development expenses and elevate productivity.

Speaking on the occasion, Srinivas Nidugondi, EVP and Chief Operating Officer, Digital Financial Solutions at Comviva said,

“Our new Low-Code/No-Code Platform marks a path-breaking advancement in the digital banking and wallet space poised to revolutionize service design and deployment by Banks, FinTechs, and Digital Wallet providers. Organizations today are challenged by the rapid assimilation of new technologies and the substantial investment is required to introduce new services. Our innovative platform offers simplified development cycle that significantly amplifies productivity, accelerates innovation, and diminishes time-to-market. The new platform will enable organizations to seamlessly address the increasing customer demands using intelligent native services and develop and deploy new digital applications quickly and efficiently.” 

Comviva’s next-generation low-code platform goes beyond configurations to simplify the process of connecting systems, mapping data fields, and defining user journeys and workflows.

It includes features like Service Flow Composer, Channel Composer, and Integration Flow Composer.

These tools assist users with diverse technical backgrounds to effortlessly create/modify services, build applications, and integrate with third-party systems with no coding efforts.

Comviva’s mobiquity is the global leader in digital payments.

With 90+ deployments in over 50 countries, processing USD 250 Bn annually, it powers consumers, merchants, businesses, and banks globally, fostering Telcos and Fintech companies to utilize its capabilities.

The platform provides an array of functionalities, ranging from digital onboarding to bill payments and merchant transactions.

 SC Ventures, Standard Chartered’s innovation, fintech investment and ventures arm has entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Yabx, a company incubated by Comviva and part of the Mahindra Group, to address a deep-rooted need for responsible consumer finance in Africa.

ALSO READ: Fintech, Yabx Launches in Nigeria to Enhance Digital Lending

Africa has over 700 million mobile wallets, and about 450 million bank accounts but access to formal credit remain severely constrained due to poor credit infrastructure and the slowly evolving risk appetite of financial services players, especially traditional banks.

The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated digitization in the financial sector and created a fertile environment for new and disruptive products to be taken to the market. The partnership between SC Ventures and Yabx is leveraging on this to create unique, Africa-specific products that will increase access of credit to the underbanked across Africa.

Nimble future-ready technology, data analytics combined with a deep understanding of banking will reduce the cost of delivery of innovative credit products, thereby widening inclusion across underserved segments in Africa where it is needed most. Given the scale and the complexity of the opportunity, SC Ventures and Yabx have taken a collaborative approach to jointly address the challenge. Loans will be provided to customers for specific purposes like education and skill development using an innovative data-driven scoring and analytics engine that has been built with rich experience from African markets. These loan products will be initially launched in Uganda and then subsequently expanded to other countries in Africa.

Jiten Arora, Member SC Ventures said, “We are excited at the prospect of using a data-driven, technology-enabled partnership model to serve the underbanked through purpose-driven loans in Africa, a continent for which we have a deep understanding and a strong commitment towards.”

Manoranjan Mohapatra, Chief Executive Officer at Comviva, commented, “Yabx has seen exponential growth over the past one year, and we will continue to invest in its mission to serve millions of consumers and MSMEs in emerging markets who have limited traditional sources of funding available to them.”

Rajat Dayal, CEO at Yabx, said, “We have a lot of synergy with SC Ventures in Africa and together we are uniquely positioned to create a seamless embedded finance experience. This partnership further bridges the gaps in the current market, driving digital innovations and bringing significant benefits to the underserved population of Africa.”