Amidst a digital payments boom on the African continent, the global payments giant Visa announced that it would spend one billion dollars in Africa by 2027 to extend its existing interests there.
This commitment was made by the chief executive officer of Visa, Al Kelly, on Wednesday during the U.S.-Africa Business Forum. This forum was a sub-event of the larger U.S.-Africa Leaders Summit, a 3-day event at which U.S. President Joe Biden invited African leaders of state and senior government officials to discuss various issues ranging from food security to climate change.
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The Purpose of the Investment
According to a statement released by Visa's chief executive officer, "Visa has been investing in Africa for many decades to create a genuinely local company, and today our commitment to the continent is as deep and unshakable as it has ever been." Every day, Visa enables digital commerce, and the flow of money in all of the African and African countries will continue to play an important role in Visa's long-term expansion ambitions. We are looking ahead to persisting our strong collaboration with our partners to develop the financial ecosystem, accelerate digitalization, and construct resilient, creative, and inclusive economies that will provide shared opportunities and further promote the growth of Africa's digital economy.
According to the statement, the committee will further scale Visa's operations in Africa and deepen partnerships with commercial alliances, including government agencies, financial firms, mobile network operators, fintech, and merchants. Specifically, the statement states that the pledge will help scale Visa's operations in Africa.
According to Visa's research, there are currently more than 40 million businesses in Africa that do not accept digital payments, less than half of the continent's adult population has ever made or received digital payments, and there are presently more than 500 million people in Africa who do not have bank accounts or are underbanked. After having invested over several years through a variety of partnerships and having thus played a significant role in Africa's current digital payments boom, the payment giant is of the opinion that this new investment, which will be spread out over five years, will make it possible for additional opportunities to grow financial inclusion on the continent.
According to Aida Diarra, senior vice president of Visa Sub-Saharan Africa, "Africa is experiencing an unprecedented digital acceleration," A growing number of consumers, merchants, and businesses have realized the advantages of safe and easy electronic payments to fuel commerce and money movement. "Africa is experiencing an unprecedented digital acceleration," "Over the last year, Visa has continued to expand its commitment in Africa by opening new offices, developing new ideas and solutions, and implementing new initiatives that directly assist financial inclusion. Our long-term commitment to Africa is outlined in the investment promise, as is the work that we will undertake to contribute to the development of the financial ecosystem.
Steps Visa Has Planned For The Investment
Visa has recently established local operations in Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, with Sudan as a result of its dedication to witnessing the ongoing growth of digital payments (such as the immense opportunity in crypto payments) in Africa. As Diarra emphasized, this increase in the number of offices across the continent is part of Visa's larger effort to see the continued growth of digital payments in Africa. Visa has invested millions of dollars in several African payment firms, including Interswitch, Flutterwave, JUMO, and Paystack. These offices assist with payments in 54 nations, as indicated by Visa.
Other strategic investments highlighted by the company to advance its Africa expansion include the opening of an innovation studio in Nairobi in April; the introduction of more recent opportunities for customers and merchants to make and receive payments, such as the Tap to Phone; the integration of Visa Direct, its global money movement network, into African solutions; and the running of the Visa Everywhere Initiative program, where several African startups have displayed their innovative payment ideas.
Featured image: Visa
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