The international transfer service launched in the new markets on 8 and 20 May respectively, following earlier releases in Madagascar, Ivory Coast, Guinea and Mali.
The Orange Money France app now facilitates transfers at any time of the day to accounts held in Burkina Faso and Morocco, sending funds in real time, directly to the recipient’s Orange Money account.
Yves Gauthier, CEO of Orange Morocco, said: "By introducing international money transfer, we want to offer our customers an alternative to traditional means of receiving money across borders. From now on, their mobile phone allows them to receive money from their relatives living in France at a lower cost, instantaneously and securely.”
The telco-pioneered fintech solution debuted in 2013 with the launch of mobile-to-mobile international money transfers between Mali, Senegal and the Ivory Coast.
The same year Orange Money upgraded payment services in Jordan to include international money transfers and in 2014, Orange joined was one of nine operators that collaborated with GSMA to launch interoperable mobile money services across Africa and the Middle East.
In 2016, Orange Bank launched after the telco took a 65% stake in Groupama Banque.
Fintech is key to financial inclusion in Africa and digital payments have become crucial for those in rural areas during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Christian Bombrun, SVP of products and services for Orange France, said: “The health crisis we are going through has shown that mobile-to- mobile money transfer is a key benefit for our customers. The opening of two new corridors, in Burkina Faso and Morocco, is an important step in Orange Money's development strategy worldwide.”
A 2020 report by FIMENA (Financial Inclusion in the MENA Region) found that the MENA region had the lowest level of financial inclusion worldwide, with only 14% of adults holding a bank account. However, fintech and microfinance solutions are making rapid gains in improving the figure.
Ben Cheick Haidara, chairman of the Orange Money Burkina Faso board of directors, added: “The financial support sent by the diaspora to their families who stayed behind in the country, and their contribution to the economy, is very important to our country.
“Having a simple, rapid and reliable solution like Orange Money, so that the beneficiary receives their money instantly, addresses a real need of our customers. Opening up international money transfers from France to Burkina Faso will cement the use of Orange Money in the daily lives of our population, alongside other existing services,” he continued.
