Mobile Finance

Kenya’s Pesalink and PAPSS partner to ease cross-border payment

Kenya’s Pesalink and PAPSS partner to ease cross-border payment
Pesalink CEO, Gituku Kirika (left) with PAPSS CEO Mike Ogbalu III (right) exchange the agreements following the signing of the partnership in Nairobi, Kenya

Kenyan money transfer service Pesalink says it has partnered with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) to ease cross-border payment and speed up regional financial integration.

The partnership enables instant 24/7 cross-border payments from PAPSS participants into banks and mobile money operators within the Pesalink network in Kenya, all settled in local currencies. This, says the partners, reduces complex correspondent banking requirements and reliance on foreign reserve currencies.

PAPSS, an initiative of the African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) in collaboration with the African Union and the AfCFTA Secretariat, enables cross-border payments between African countries. Pesalink is now a Technical Connectivity Provider. This means that more than 80 Kenyan bank, fintech, SACCO (savings and credit cooperative organisation) and telco participants on the Pesalink network will be connected to more than 160 commercial banks and fintechs on the PAPSS platform.

The partners argue that cross-border payments remain expensive and slow for many African businesses and say that the Pesalink–PAPSS partnership will reduce costs, speed up settlements, and help individuals, SMEs and businesses to send money more efficiently across borders.

This type of collaboration is important for PAPSS. CEO Mike Ogbalu III explains: “For PAPSS to deliver true impact, collaboration with national and private switches like Pesalink is essential. Pesalink is the first switch we’ve piloted for transaction termination in Kenya, and we are already seeing greater adoption by opening more channels for seamless, local-currency cross-border payments across Africa.”

Pesalink CEO, Gituku Kirika, adds: “Kenyan banks will now be able to offer faster, cheaper cross-border payments. They will be helping their customers grow more regional trading relationships and thrive in a more integrated digital economy.”



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