MFS Africa, a leading digital payments network in Africa, has rebranded to Onafriq. The company’s founder and CEO, Dare Okoudjou, explained that the rebrand was necessary because the MFS trademark belongs to another company in the US, and Onafriq’s ability to use it outside of Africa was becoming difficult.
Okoudjou also cited Onafriq’s significant growth and several acquisitions, including the recent acquisition of GTP, which expanded the company’s reach to the US market, as reasons for the rebrand. He said that Onafriq has expanded beyond just mobile financial services to become a true omni-channel platform across the continent and beyond.
The new name, Onafriq, reflects the company’s aspiration to wire up the whole continent into one network of networks with pathways from and to every African and every African business.
Okoudjou said that his goal from the get-go was to build a payment infrastructure that touches every corner of Africa and that lasts for over 100 years. He hopes that Onafriq can help to make borders truly matter less.
In today’s fragmented payment landscape, the complexity surrounding cross-border transactions often impedes the free flow of money and inhibits international trade. Onafriq aims to break down these barriers, paving the way for economic growth and empowerment.
MFS Tremendous impact
MFS Africa has enabled over 400 million mobile money users to make payments to and from over 187 million wallets across 35 African countries. The company also offers a range of other financial services, including international money transfers, bill payments, and airtime top-up. It was founded in 2009 by Dare Okoudjou, who had the vision of creating a pan-African payments network that would make it easy and affordable for people to send and receive money across the continent. The company has since grown rapidly, becoming one of the largest digital payments networks in Africa.
Under its silver lining, MFS has dazzled with numerous awards for its innovation and impact on Africa, including the “Best Mobile Money Service Provider in Africa” award at the 2022 World Finance Awards and being a member of the Mastercard family, having been acquired by Mastercard in 2020
