By Over 53% of the adult population in emerging markets will use mobile money services by 2030; expected to gain over 370 million additional users from 2026.
A study by Juniper Research identified the rising adoption of open platforms and APIs as being key to enabling interoperability saying that these changes allow providers to integrate seamlessly with key partners such as banks, financial institutions and fintechs; unlocking new use cases such as mobile microloans, microinsurance, savings, and Buy Now, Pay Later schemes.
Jawad Jahan, Research Analyst at Juniper Research, noted “The industry-wide push towards expanding interoperability between mobile money platforms is enabling growth and improving financial inclusion for low-and-middle income population groups. Advancements in the technology layer are allowing vendors to expand beyond siloed systems, and integrate into the wider financial ecosystem; driving mobile money from basic services to more advanced banking-like capabilities.”
The research recommends mobile money providers prioritise building out open API ecosystems and developing relationships with key partners such as banks, agent networks, retailers and other technology providers. This enables platforms to position their capabilities to best match changing market trends.
“As smartphone penetration rises, mobile money is evolving from simple USSD-based P2P transfers into fully-fledged financial super apps. Open APIs will be critical in connecting these services; enabling seamless embedded finance, and unlocking the next wave of digital financial inclusion. Platforms failing to enable this transition will be rapidly left behind”, Jahan explained.
The new market research suite offers the most comprehensive assessment of mobile money in emerging markets to date; providing analysis and forecasts of over 10,000 datapoints across 15 countries over five years. It includes a ‘Competitor Leaderboard’ and examination of current and future market opportunities.
