Airtel Africa Partners with Network International to Enhance Payment Processing

Airtel Africa has formed a strategic partnership with Network International, a leading digital commerce enabler in the Middle East and Africa (MEA), to significantly improve its payment processing capabilities.

This collaboration is set to provide Airtel Africa users with a seamless and enhanced customer experience, encompassing both traditional mobile services and innovative digital payment solutions.

Headquartered in the United Arab Emirates, Network International operates in over 50 countries, including 40 in Africa. The company serves more than 200 financial institutions and processes over 1.6 billion transactions annually. Network International’s extensive experience and strong presence in the African market make it an ideal partner for Airtel Africa.

Airtel Africa, operating in 14 countries across the continent with a focus on Central and West Africa, serves over 140 million customers, including more than 36 million users of its Airtel Money platform. The partnership with Network International will enhance Airtel’s services in its major markets, offering a wide range of services such as card issuance, transaction processing, card hosting and management, online fraud prevention, internal reconciliation and settlement, and online access for Airtel users.

Ian Ferrao, Group CEO of Airtel Money, expressed his excitement about the collaboration: “We are thrilled to join forces with Network International to boost our payment processing capabilities. This partnership will allow us to offer an enhanced customer experience and promote digital financial inclusion throughout Africa.” He highlighted that Network International’s extensive knowledge of the African market would help Airtel innovate and expand its services more effectively.

Network International emphasized that their solution would enable Airtel’s subscribers to access both traditional mobile services and new digital payment services seamlessly. Dr. Reda Helal, Group Managing Director of Processing in Africa and Co-Head of Group Processing at Network International, stated, “Our partnership with Airtel is a significant achievement for our outsourced payment services in Africa. It demonstrates our capability to effectively serve Mobile Network Operators (MNOs) with our comprehensive processing solutions, reaffirming our commitment to the African region. We are excited to support Airtel’s growth strategy and business development initiatives across the continent.”

This partnership marks a pivotal step in enhancing Airtel Africa’s payment processing infrastructure, aiming to deliver superior digital financial services to millions of users across the continent.