The Central Bank of West African States (Bceao) has published an annual report on the situation of digital financial services in the area of the West African Economic Monetary Union (UEMOA) during the year 2017 The number of transactions in 2017 amounted to approximately 1,254.5 million against 735.2 million a year earlier, an increase of 70.6%.

Subscriptions and transactions of digital financial services in UEMOA experienced an expansion in 2017 with an increase of 70.6%. This is what the Bceao informs in its annual report on the situation of digital financial services in the WAEMU during the year 2017.

This report summarizes the situation of financial services via mobile telephony in WAEMU for the year 2017. It reviews the overall activities of digital financial services, in particular the number of subscribers, the volume and the value of the transactions carried out as well as the breakdown by service offer and by country for the period under review.

“As of December 31, 2017, twenty-eight (28) deployments of financial services via mobile telephony were counted in the Union, compared to thirty-three (33) a year earlier,” reads the report consulted by the Journal. of the Senegalese economy (Lejecos).

According to the document, the sector, currently characterized by the reduction of partnerships between mobile telephone operators and financial institutions, has seen the arrival of new players, namely MTN Mobile Money in Benin, Orange Money in Burkina, MTN MFS and SGBCI YUP in Côte d'Ivoire, Ecobank in partnership with the Orange group in Guinea-Bissau, BIMAO and SGBS-YUP in Senegal, as well as BTCI in Togo, but also the cessation of activities for SGBCI, UBA-CI, Ecobank- CI who were in partnership with the MTN group.

“During 2017, the number of electronic money account subscribers in WAEMU stood at 50.5 million, compared to 36.5 million in 2016, an increase of 38.48%. The number of transactions in 2017 amounted to approximately 1,254.5 million against 735.2 million a year earlier, an increase of 70.6%. Nearly 3.5 million transactions were processed on average per day by all existing mobile payment platforms in the Union compared to 2.0 million in 2016,” reads the report.

The value of these transactions increased during the period under review, from 11.501 billion CFA francs in 2016 to 16.943 billion CFA francs at the end of December 2017. The average daily value of transactions is estimated at around 47. FCfa 1 billion in 2017, against FCfa 31.9 billion a year earlier, an increase of 47.6%.

The evolution of financial services can be explained in particular by the entry into the market of new players, the strengthening of the acceptance network, the deployment of service points, as well as the communication strategies initiated by the players, in particular , on the offer of new services.