Onafriq, a partner of Ripple, has announced a partnership with M-PESA, a Kenyan-based mobile money service, to enable remittances to Ethiopia. This collaboration suggests the potential integration of Ripple’s digital asset, XRP.
Operating in 40 African countries, Onafriq has been instrumental in supporting the increasing trend of remittances, which play a crucial role in empowering the continent. In an effort to simplify payments, M-PESA has teamed up with Onafriq to facilitate remittances to Ethiopia. It is estimated that Ethiopia receives over $5 billion in remittances annually. This partnership will provide international customers with a convenient and efficient way to send money to their loved ones in Ethiopia.
Onafriq, with its impressive network of 500 million mobile money wallets and 200 million bank accounts, has been a valuable player in the digital payment landscape across Africa. By operating in 40 countries, it has contributed significantly to facilitating international remittances.
Earlier this year, Ripple Labs and Onafriq announced a strategic partnership aimed at enhancing payments between Africa and new markets. Under the previous name MFS Africa, Onafriq expanded cross-border payments in Africa to new markets, including the Gulf Cooperation Council, the UK, and Australia. Onafriq operates as an omnichannel network of networks, ensuring that partners have a unified pathway to leverage cross-border and cross-platform payment solutions.
M-PESA, on the other hand, is Africa’s leading mobile money service, boasting over 604,000 active agents. It serves more than 51 million customers across seven African countries, offering a secure, affordable, and convenient way to send and receive money.
The partnership between these two financial powerhouses has the potential to promote greater financial inclusion in Africa, starting with Ethiopia. Paul Kavavu, the General Manager at Safaricom Ethiopia, expressed their goal of making payments easier. The inclusion of international money transfer services into M-PESA aligns perfectly with this objective. With Ethiopia receiving over $5 billion in remittances annually, this partnership will provide the Ethiopian Diaspora with a seamless and rapid formal channel to send money to their loved ones.
This collaboration enables Ethiopians living abroad to send funds directly to M-PESA wallets, potentially utilizing Ripple’s technology (previously known as ODL) for faster and smoother transactions. This could drive demand and adoption for Ripple technology and XRP tokens.
It is worth noting that several African countries have been grappling with economic challenges in recent years. For instance, Nigeria has faced an inflation rate of nearly 30% and a 230% devaluation of its currency, the naira, in the past year. XRP could potentially serve as an investment and deflationary asset in such economically challenging situations.
Ghana has also experienced inflation averaging 14.3% in the past decade, and a World Bank report confirms that remittance rates in Africa are among the highest globally.
At the time of writing, XRP has experienced a bullish surge of nearly 5% in the last 24 hours, helping to recover some of its weekly losses. With prices down by approximately 6% in the last seven days, XRP is currently trading at $0.62 and has surpassed a significant psychological threshold.
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