Vodacom Tanzania has unveiled a major expansion of its mobile money platform, M-Pesa, launching what it calls “M-Pesa Global Payment,” a new service that allows customers to make seamless and secure cross-border payments worldwide.
Through a series of strategic partnerships with global payments giants including Visa, Alipay, Network International, MTN Uganda and payments infrastructure providers such as Thunes and TerraPay, Vodacom says M-Pesa users can now pay merchants worldwide, from China and Dubai to neighboring Uganda directly from their mobile wallets or via the M-Pesa Super App.
Richard Yego, MTN Mobile Money Uganda Director, welcomed the collaboration saying, “This partnership marks a major stride toward seamless regional trade. Together with Vodacom, we are unlocking greater financial access for thousands of cross-border traders in Uganda and Tanzania, especially SMEs who are the backbone of our economies.”
The service supports a broad suite of payment options: “Tap & Pay” worldwide using a tokenized M-Pesa Visa card; payments to merchants in China via the Alipay ecosystem; transactions in Dubai through TerraPay merchants; and direct transfers to MTN MoMo wallets in Uganda, all accessible from a user’s existing M-Pesa interface.
According to Vodacom, the rollout is aimed at overcoming long-standing obstacles faced by East African traders, businesses and travelers who engage in cross-border commerce. The company said that the new offering simplifies previously cumbersome processes: it reduces reliance on traditional banks, eliminates delays, lowers costs, and improves security.
“Together, we are enabling people and businesses to transact across borders with the same ease as they transact locally, securely, instantly and affordably,” said Epimack Mbeteni, M-Pesa Director at Vodacom Tanzania.
Mr Mbeteni added that the move is central to M-Pesa’s mission of deepening financial inclusion and empowering micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) to participate fully in the global digital economy.
Launched in Kenya in 2007, M-Pesa has over the years grown into one of Africa’s largest mobile money services, expanding to several countries including Tanzania, Mozambique, Ghana, and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The introduction of M-Pesa Global Payment marks a pivotal evolution, from local peer-to-peer transfers to fully fledged international payments, effectively bridging African mobile money with global payment infrastructures.
Data from recent years show a sharp increase in demand for mobile money services across Africa. For instance, the uptake of mobile payments surged by 92% between 2020 and 2024, underscoring the rising reliance on digital financial services as traditional banking remains out of reach for many.
TerraPay powers international merchant payments, including the ability for M-Pesa users to transact with select merchants in Dubai through its global payment network.
Speaking on the value of the Dubai payment corridor, Willie Kanyeki, Vice President of Sub-Saharan Africa at TerraPay, said, “At TerraPay, we believe in interoperability and enabling borderless payments. Our partnership with Vodacom expands secure digital commerce opportunities for Tanzanians doing business in Dubai, connecting African consumers to new global markets.”
Andrew Stewart, Chief Revenue Officer at Thunes, added: “Digitizing cross-border payments is a game-changer for accessibility, and supports our mission to enable the next billion end users to take part in the global economy.
Together with Vodacom, we are making it possible for Tanzanian businesses to pay Chinese merchants instantly through the Alipay network. This new level of interoperability and innovation strengthens trust in mobile financial ecosystems and opens new avenues for international trade.”
By enabling Tanzanian users to pay merchants in China, Dubai, and other parts of the world directly from their phones, the feature sets the stage for more robust participation of African businesses in global trade without having to rely on foreign bank accounts or expensive currency-exchange services.
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