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Scale, a South African card‑issuing startup, has partnered with Mastercard, a global payments company, to simplify card products for businesses in Senegal, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Across many African markets, companies offering card payment must coordinate with several parties, including issuing banks, payment networks, and Bank Identification Number (BIN) sponsors, leading to slow product launches and increasing operational complexity. Mastercard and Scale say their one-integration model streamlines onboarding, processing, and compliance so businesses can focus on building products for customers while the platform handles the operational heavy lifting. In Kenya, where mobile money is already big and card usage is growing for e-commerce and higher-value transactions, the partnership mainly cuts complexity and time-to-market for existing fintech players. In markets like Senegal, Ivory Coast, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, where cards are less common and cash or mobile wallets still dominate, the focus is on enabling new use cases such as companion wallet cards, small and medium enterprises, corporate spending cards, payout cards for governments and non-profit organisations. Through the partnership, Scale, founded in 2022 by Barbara Woollams and Miranda Naidoo, provides the issuing infrastructure, customer onboarding tools, and regulatory support while Mastercard brings its global payments network, bank partnerships and market expertise. “Across Africa, innovators are creating powerful solutions, yet many are slowed down by the complex steps required to issue cards, which has a significant impact on their business, the market, and their growth,” said Miranda Naidoo, Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Scale. “This collaboration with Mastercard removes those hurdles by giving businesses one clear, efficient way to enter the market and scale.” This partnership builds on Scale’s earlier momentum, which included raising $700,000 in October 2024 to grow its card‑issuing platform across Africa. Additionally, it follows the surging demand for digital payments. McKinsey projected that Africa’s financial‑services revenues could reach around $230 billion in 2025, while globally, modern card‑issuing platforms are expected to issue about 35% of all payment cards by 2029. “By simplifying the issuing journey, we are supporting fintechs and non-financial institutions as they expand access to digital financial services and bring more consumers and businesses into the formal economy,” said Mete Guney, Executive Vice President, Market Development for Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa at Mastercard. The partnership gives Scale the network and credibility to move faster across five markets. The harder question is whether Scale has the operational depth to match that ambition, particularly in markets where mobile money already works well, and regulatory frameworks vary significantly. The next twelve months will be telling.
Read MoreMoniepoint Inc., a Nigerian business-banking unicorn, has completed its acquisition of a 78% stake in Kenya’s Sumac Microfinance Bank, ending a multi-year effort by the Nigerian fintech to secure a foothold in East Africa’s largest economy. The deal was finalised on Thursday as executives gathered for a reception in Nairobi’s Westlands area. It provides Moniepoint with a deposit-taking licence, an essential requirement for its credit-led expansion strategy. After a previous attempt to enter the market via payments firm Kopo Kopo stalled, the acquisition of Sumac allows Moniepoint to bypass the Central Bank of Kenya’s (CBK) long-standing freeze on new licences and compete with incumbents such as Safaricom and Equity Group. The transaction reflects a broader shift in the African fintech landscape: from pure-play payments to licensed banking and consolidation. By securing a majority stake in a 20-year-old institution, Moniepoint gains the regulatory infrastructure needed to deploy its high-velocity lending model to Kenya’s small and medium -sized enterprises (SMEs). The move also signals the company’s ambition to build a cross-border ecosystem that captures the entire merchant value chain, rather than solely on transaction fees. Moniepoint’s entry into Kenya follows its acquisition of Orda, a cloud-based restaurant software provider, earlier this week. The company plans to export its business-in-a-box strategy—which integrates inventory management, payroll, and working capital—into a market where digital lending is undergoing increased regulatory scrutiny. This will be achieved by combining Orda’s vertical SaaS capabilities with Sumac’s banking infrastructure. Moniepoint, which processed more than $294 billion in annualised transaction value in 2025, is likely betting that its experience in Nigeria’s fragmented retail sector will translate effectively to Kenya. While Sumac is a tier-three lender, its existing branch network and regulatory standing offer Moniepoint one of the ways to scale in a region increasingly shaped by digital-first credit.
Read MoreOne in 20 Nigerians now earns above ₦1 million ($723.26) monthly, according to data from savings platform Piggyvest’s new savings report. The share of those earning ₦1 million ($723.26) or more monthly rose to 5% in 2025, from 2% in 2024. The report, which surveyed over 25,000 Nigerians, shows that while income levels are improving across several brackets, inflation, especially on food, is widening the gap between earning more and living better. This reflects a broader economic reality in Nigeria, where income growth is struggling to keep pace with inflation and currency weakness. As prices rise faster than wages, higher earnings are doing little to improve living standards, leaving many households financially stretched despite nominal gains. Middle-income brackets, people earning between ₦250,000 ($180.82) and ₦499,999 ($361.63) rose to 10%, and the ₦100,000 ($72.33) to ₦249,999 ($180.81) band increased to 23%. Overall, nearly three in five Nigerians still report earning below ₦100,000 ($72.33) monthly or having no income at all. The illusion of income growth Incomes are rising, but purchasing power is falling. Nigeria’s median monthly income stands at about ₦200,225 ($146.55), according to Risevest, a Nigerian fintech that allows users to invest in dollar-denominated assets. But with inflation peaking above 33% in 2024 and still at 15.06% as of February 2026, those earnings buy significantly less. “People are earning more and affording less,” said Piggyvest co-founder Odun Eweniyi. The pressure is uneven across demographics. Gen Z Nigerians are the most likely to earn below ₦100,000 ($72.33) or have no income, while millennials are more evenly spread across income brackets, with greater representation in higher bands. At the same time, income diversification remains limited. Nearly two-thirds of working Nigerians still rely on a single source of income, leaving them more exposed to economic shocks. Food is swallowing up everything For most Nigerians (72%), food now dominates monthly spending. Clothing and personal upkeep (39%), transport (33%), rent (31%), and utilities (38%) follow. Food inflation hit a 28-year high of 41% in May 2024, forcing the government to temporarily remove import duties on key items. Although it is currently at 12.12%, food inflation remains elevated, accounting for a significant share of household expenses. Most respondents reported spending less than ₦200,000 ($144.65) monthly, but even within that range, essentials are crowding out everything else, particularly savings. Only 40% of Nigerians say they save consistently, or only when they have money left over after expenses. More than half, 53%, do not save at all. This stood at 43% in 2024. “What we are seeing at scale is that even people with the discipline and intent to save are being forced to redirect those funds towards the basics,” Eweniyi said. “Food, fuel, rent, school fees. These aren’t discretionary expenses you can cut.” The trend aligns with earlier data from Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFInA), which found that 78% of Nigerian adults would struggle to raise emergency funds within seven days, while only 16% are considered financially healthy. Among those who still manage to save, the priorities are emergency funds (30%), children’s needs (29%), and business investment (24%). Low savings, low debt Despite the pressure, relatively few Nigerians report being in debt. Only one in five respondents said they owe money. Nearly 70% of the one in five owe less than ₦200,000 ($144.65). Rather than excessive borrowing, the data points to constrained consumption. “Most debt is driven by timing, not irresponsible spending,” said Joshua Chibueze, chief marketing officer and co-founder of Piggyvest. Among borrowers, 32% rely on savings to repay loans, while 17% turn to friends and family. Overall, the report underscores that even though income growth is happening through salary adjustments, side hustles, and a small expansion of higher earners, inflation, particularly in food, is absorbing those gains almost entirely.
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