MultiChoice Group launches fintech unit to revolutionise African Payments

MultiChoice Group, the South African media company behind DStv, SuperSport, and other media assets, is launching ‘Moment,’ a payment infrastructure platform dedicated to businesses throughout Africa.

In collaboration with two investors, Rapyd and General Catalyst, MultiChoice Group will establish its new fintech joint venture aimed at developing an “integrated payment platform for Africa”.

Moment aims to revolutionise African payments by offering businesses easier, faster, and more affordable collection and payment methods and also plans to provide consumers with smart spending and saving options.

A statement released by the company said “Moment will consolidate the $3.5-billion in payments that MultiChoice Group processes annually.

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Calvo Mawela, MultiChoice Group CEO said the JV will “address the need for an accessible and reliable payment platform for many small businesses and millions of consumers in Africa”.

“Investing in this venture is a logical progression for us, as we already process payments every month from 22 million households across 50 countries. Moment fulfills our strategy to expand our ecosystem by investing in adjacent businesses that provide scalable services, underpinned by technology,” Mawela said.

Similarly, the pan-Africa fintech aims at catering to the needs of the continent’s 44 million small businesses. By reducing reliance on cash payments, MultiChoice aims to make digital transactions more accessible to the 350 million underbanked or unbanked consumers in Africa.

MultiChoice is particularly keen on driving the adoption of South Africa’s PayShap and similar real-time payment methods. Furthermore, the company plans to provide a platform for global African trade, enabling importers and exporters to have virtual accounts in over 40 currencies while facilitating local payments in more than 130 countries.