Mark Your Calendar: The Virtual Assets Regulation in Africa webinar is set for July 21, 2025, at 13:00 GMT.
AFN and Ripple are hosting a webinar to delve into the evolving regulatory landscape for virtual assets in Africa and how it can enhance financial inclusion, improve cross-border payments, and foster sustainable fintech growth across the continent. Don’t miss the conversation on Monday, July 21, 2025, at 1:00 PM WAT. See the link below for details.
Register Now: https://shorturl.at/pWBWu
Namibia to launch a new payments system based on India’s UPI
Namibia will soon roll out a new payments system based on the Unified Payments Interface (UPI), India’s ultra-successful instant payments protocol.
A year ago, the Bank of Namibia and the International Payments Limited (NIPL), a wholly owned subsidiary of the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI), signed a partnership to develop the new system. A week ago, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the Southern African nation to seal the deal.
After the visit, a statement by the External Affairs Ministry revealed that the rollout is scheduled for September.
Read more: https://coingeek.com/namibia-to-launch-a-new-payments-system-based-on-india-upi/
UBA unveils AI-powered cross-border payment platform
United Bank for Africa Plc has announced a significant milestone in its digital banking journey with the enablement of its Artificial Intelligence chatbot, LEO, to facilitate cross-border payment transactions.
This development, according to a statement from the bank, makes LEO the first AI-powered chatbot in Africa to offer cross-border payments, providing customers with a seamless and instant way to transfer funds across the continent.
The platform leverages the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System, developed in partnership with the African Export-Import Bank. This allows individuals, traders, and corporates to transfer money in local currencies between African countries where the Central Bank has approved PAPSS operations.
Read more: https://punchng.com/uba-unveils-ai-powered-cross-border-payment-platform/
Trendyol, Ant International, others to build Turkey fintech platform
Trendyol Group, Baykar CEO Haluk Bayraktar, Abu Dhabi’s sovereign fund ADQ, and Ant International have signed a memorandum of understanding to explore a joint fintech venture in Turkey.
This initiative aims to offer digital financial services, including payments, loans, deposits, investments, and insurance, pending regulatory approval.
The proposed platform will focus on individuals and small businesses, using Trendyol’s ecommerce infrastructure.
Read more: https://www.techinasia.com/news/trendyol-ant-international-build-turkey-fintech-platform
Visa Opens Applications for Fifth Africa Fintech Accelerator
Visa has opened applications for the fifth cohort of its Africa Fintech Accelerator, a three-month program offering mentorship, tech resources, and funding opportunities to early-stage fintech startups on the continent. Applications close on August 15.
The accelerator, launched in 2023, is part of Visa’s $1 billion commitment to financial inclusion in Africa by 2027. Since its inception, the program has supported dozens of startups across four cohorts and facilitated nearly 20 active partnerships.
Read more: https://www.dabafinance.com/en/news/visa-africa-fintech-accelerator-2025-cohort-five
Equifax Australia partners with Mastercard to launch new solutions
Equifax Australia and Mastercard have entered into a strategic partnership to combine the former’s data and analytics capabilities with the latter’s Open Finance solutions.
Through this collaboration, Equifax and Mastercard aim to introduce new and advanced products to the Australian market.
Scaling financial inclusion in Australia
Initially, the two companies launched Equifax Open Score, a new bank transaction score developed to support over 2.5 million consumers with limited or no credit history who may still need access to financial services, including young individuals, new migrants, and those re-entering the credit market. With this solution, Equifax and Mastercard intend to serve these often overlooked groups that are not adequately addressed by traditional assessment models.
