Celebrating Ghana’s Fintech Progress In 63 Years

At WorldRemit we would like to join Ghanaians across the globe in celebrating 63 years of independence Ghana and its citizens across the globe have plenty to celebrate.

The nation has emerged as one of the leading countries in Africa for digital financial services and mobile money. Digital financial services have the potential to foster greater financial inclusion, gender parity and sustained economic growth. Our vision at WorldRemit is to accelerate financial inclusion, in line with the objectives of the African Development Bank’s Digital Financial Inclusion Facility. We are driving this through our mobile-first approach and are now the leading provider of remittances to mobile money wallets across the world.

Ghana was one of the top five African countries to receive remittances in 2019, where we saw a 43% increase in transactions. Our data on transactions reveals that Ghanaians are far more likely to use their mobile phones to send remittances. Moving from an “informal courier service” to online payments, results in a secure, fast and convenient international payments service, as it eliminates the potential for human error. Mobile money also promotes safety as individuals no longer need to carry physical cash.

Mobile money payment services are also having a transformative impact on low and middle-income consumers, as they provide a path to greater financial security and prosperity. Remittances have also been highlighted by the government of Ghana as a key contributor to the growth of mobile money services. Ghana was the second country in Africa after Tanzania to allow mobile money customers to earn interest on balances held in their accounts.

The diversity of migration destinations from Australia to Zambia reflects the openness and welcoming nature upon which Ghanaians have built their reputation. When the United Nations declared 2015–2024 as the International Decade for People of African Descent, the Ghanaian government announced 2019 as the “Year of Return”. A number of events were hosted across the country which culminated in citizenship being granted to 126 African-Americans, in commemoration of the 400th anniversary of the first shipment of African slaves to the United States. Following the success of the 2019 Year of Return programme, President Akuffo-Addo announced a new initiative named, “Beyond the Return'' to encourage people from the diaspora to invest in Ghana via business start-ups, property acquisition, relocating or investment vehicles.

Many Ghanaians in the diaspora are now looking at Africa not just as a place of historical ancestry, but also as a destination in which to thrive and do business.The growth in digitisation and mobile money across the continent has contributed to the substantial growth of intra-African remittances. The African Continental Free Trade Area (ACFTA) agreement, which promotes intra-African trade and regional integration, is also contributing to the growth of intra-African remittances. The World Bank already estimates that migrant workers within Africa send remittances in excess of $46 billion dollars each year. In 2018 intra-African remittances represented 20% of global remittance flows, according to the Ecobank Group.

We have formed partnerships with MTN Ghana (MoMo), to drive financial inclusion and also provide our customers with even more remittance options including mobile money, cash pick up, bank transfers, WorldRemit wallet and airtime top-up.

At WorldRemit, we remain committed to providing a convenient, fast and secure service that is great value for money. Whether you choose to celebrate with a bottle of Star, Alvaro or Malta, we would like to take this opportunity to wish all of our Ghanaian customers a happy independence day!