BII announces a U$20m loan to TerraPay to enhance low-cost, high-speed remittance transfers to Africa, promoting financial inclusion and economic opportunities. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

British International Investment (BII), the UK's development finance institution (DFI) and impact investor, has announced a US$20mn senior secured loan to TerraPay, a global cross-border payments processor that focuses on remittance transfers into Africa

This investment aims to lower costs, increase speed, and enhance the reliability and accessibility of remittance transfers into the continent, thereby improving financial inclusion.

Lowering remittance costs

Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest remittance costs globally, with an average cost of 8% for sending US$200 in 2022, compared to the global average of 6.2%. This cost is more than double the Sustainable Development Goal target of 3%, according to the World Bank.

TerraPay's network connects traditional money transfer operators, such as Western Union, and digital-only fintechs like Wise, with major mobile money operators in Africa, including M-Pesa, MTN Mobile Money, and Airtel Mobile Money. Its technology-enabled model facilitates real-time, lower-cost digital money transfers, addressing the issues of high transfer fees and slow settlements for the African diaspora.

BII's funding will be used as part of TerraPay's working capital to pre-fund increasing remittance volumes to Africa. The funding will prioritise key African corridors, with high volumes expected in Kenya, Ghana, Egypt, Uganda, Tanzania, Cameroon, Mali, Benin, Cote d’Ivoire, Senegal, and Mozambique.

BII is committing through Lendable's existing senior secured facility, leveraging the partner's expertise in fintech debt investing across Africa and their investment monitoring capabilities.

Chris Chijiutomi, managing director and head of Africa at BII, stated, "Sending money to Africa is expensive. That is why our investment in TerraPay is critical to help increase availability of lower-cost, efficient, accessible, and reliable remittances. This aligns with our goal to support resilient financing and improve economic opportunities on the continent."

Suresh Samuel, managing director and head of fintech at Lendable, added, "We have been supporting TerraPay since 2020, as the company accelerated its growth facilitating remittances across emerging markets. We continue to believe in the importance of increasing digital payments globally and are excited to work with BII in furthering support to TerraPay to expand this mandate."

The initiative aims to mobilise US$12bn for the cotton four countries (Benin, Burkina Faso, Chad and Mali) as well as Côte d’Ivoire. (Image source: Adobe Stock)

The United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) has partnered with the World Trade Organisation (WTO) in order to develop a strategy with the aim of raising significant capital for the production of sustainable cotton production across Africa

The initiative – which follows the WTO’s 9th Global analysis for Aid for Trade – is aimed at mobilising investment financing and includes UNIDO, WTO, ITC and Afreximbank. Other financial bodies include Africa Finance Corporation (AFC) and the International Islamic Trade Finance Corporation (ITFC).

“Our combined aim is to encourage fair and sustainable local cotton processing to promote decent jobs and economic development in the region,” said UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller. “UNIDO is devoted to leveraging our knowledge to enhance local value addition in the cotton sector and support the growth of a comprehensive and sustainable textile industry.”

WTO director-general Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, added, “West Africa is on the brink of a historic opportunity in the cotton and textile sector. We are working closely with UNIDO, ITC, and other partners to assist the Cotton Four countries in expanding their cotton value chains.”

The Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM) 2024 were held in Nassau, The Bahamas. (Image source: Afreximbank)

African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has launched its African Trade Report 2024 and African Trade and Economic Outlook Report 2024, forecasting greater growth in African economies than the global average

The reports were launched at the Afreximbank Annual Meetings (AAM) 2024 which was held in Nassau, The Bahamas. The latter of which, titled ‘A Resilient Africa: Delivering Growth in a Turbulent World’, analyses the economic environment, trade patterns, debt scenarios and future projections for African economies. One of the key, positive takeways highlighted by the organisation is that African economies are expected to grow on average by 3.8% in 2024 – a figure greater than the predicted global growth of 3.2%. In 2025, Afreximbank forecasts this to climb even higher, reaching 4% growth.

“This performance is reflective of the resilience of the African economy and the potential impact of the African Continental Free Trade Area’s (AfCFTA) single market for the continent as a tool to protect them from global shocks,” explained Yemi Kale, Afreximbank’s group chief economist and managing director of research and international cooperation. “Our analysis in the report also revealed large untapped potential in intra-African trade, especially with respect to machinery, electricity, motor vehicles, and food products.”

The report also revealed that African economies face several downside risks, including increasing levels of sovereign debt and associated sustainability risks, excessive exposure to adverse terms-of-trade shocks, escalating geopolitical tensions in some cases, volatile domestic political environments in certain African countries, high commodity prices and inflationary pressures, and potential food insecurity.

Despite this, the general outlook for Africa in 2024 remains positive with the research suggesting that most macroeconomic indicators are expected to improve in 2024 and 2025.

AfCFTA’s impact

In the African Trade Report 2024, titled 'Climate Implications of the AfCFTA Implementation', it is concluded that the AfCFTA offers a path to achieving the developmental goals of African nations while also addressing climate change concerns, according to the chief economist.

Kale also indicated that while the benefits of the AfCFTA can be seen, the debate on its impact on climate change is still ongoing. He remarked, “One group believes that increased urbanisation and industrialisation associated with the AfCFTA will worsen carbon emissions, and the second group believes that by emphasising intra-African trade and reducing extra-African trade, carbon emissions will be eliminated through shorter shipping distances.”

Overall, the report states that optimising the AfCFTA can result in potential gains through increased intra-African trade and investment, creating economic prosperity and fulfilling the vision of the founding fathers.

Earlier this year, Afreximbank captured headlines by announcing a financing facility to support the Government of Cameroon implement its National Development Strategy. Read more at: https://africanreview.com/finance/cameroon-national-development-strategy-receives-afreximbank-backing

Lorenzo Pellegrino, chief operating and digital officer, and Juan Pablo Jutgla, CEO. (Image source: PayRetailers)

Leading payment processor for Latin America, PayRetailers, has announced its expansion to Africa in a bid to offer a unified payment solution to support online merchants

The company has indicated that it will activate its payment processing functions in Rwanda, Zambia, Uganda and Tanzania, offering a user-friendly and scalable business experience to businesses looking to grow their regional operations. This will also provide them access to major local methods such as SPENN, Airtel and MTN, in what has been described as a ‘game changer for cross-border online merchants looking at Africa as their next move for strategic growth’.

“As a part of our strategic expansion, we are extending our coverage to four markets in Africa, at least to start with,” Lorenzo Pellegrino, chief operating & digital officer at the fintech, commented. “Over the coming months, we plan to steadily expand our operation in the continent, which is experiencing incredible growth in the payments industry and has massive potential for merchants looking to diversify and broaden their consumer base. Using the stellar and continuous growth we have experienced in LATAM as our guide, we are well-poised to help businesses thrive faster and more sustainably.”

Africa’s blossoming market

PayRetailers indicated that it has taken this step on account of the increasingly connected market in Africa and is hoping to contribute to this exciting era of prosperity.

“We recognise the immense potential and significance of venturing into these dynamic markets,” added Juan Pablo Jutgla, CEO of PayRetailers. “Each new addition to our market coverage is a gateway into untapped opportunities and strengthened partnerships, ensuring our sustained growth and global relevance. Our imminent expansion into additional countries across West, North, and southern Africa underscores our commitment to empowering our clients and connecting them with diverse consumer bases across the continent.”

From May onward, businesses will be able to operate in the region using PayRetailers for their online users and the company has stated that further expansion plans already in stow for the coming months.