Alliance will power faster, broader financial connectivity across Sub-Saharan Africa
Lomé, Togo & Singapore – October 29, 2025 - Thunes, the Smart Superhighway to move money around the world and Ecobank Group, the leading pan-African financial institution, today announced a collaboration which will enable instant cross-border payments for millions of individuals and businesses across Sub-Saharan Africa.
The partnership operationalizes the landmark memorandum of understanding signed between Ecobank and Transfer To, Thunes' holding company, in 2024. That agreement envisioned a fundamental transformation of financial access and cross-border payment solutions across Africa.
This new chapter of financial access will see a large-scale integration between banking and fintech infrastructures, making it easier for people and businesses to send, receive, and manage money instantly across borders. Faster settlements, simpler access to liquidity, and broader reach will unlock new possibilities for growth and participation in the digital economy.
The pan-African deployment will progressively expand across Ecobank's entire 32-country operational footprint, in line with local regulations in each market. This phased continental rollout aims to connect Ecobank customers to Thunes' Direct Global Network, which spans over 130 countries and connects to 7 billion mobile wallets and bank accounts worldwide.
By combining Ecobank’s extensive and deep local presence with Thunes’ trusted Direct Global Network, the alliance empowers entrepreneurs to trade beyond borders, families to support loved ones instantly, and communities to take part in a more dynamic, digital African economy.
“This collaboration marks a major development in how we power payments across Africa,” said Peter De Caluwe, Co-Founder and CEO of Thunes. “Thunes’ solutions and Ecobank’s reach are a perfect match: together we’re delivering faster, more reliable access to liquidity and creating new pathways for growth across Sub-Saharan Africa. The result is a live, large-scale solution that’s transforming how money moves across the continent. This represents a key milestone in our mission to enable the next billion end users to take part in the global economy.”
“Our collaboration with Thunes perfectly aligns with Ecobank’s mission to provide borderless banking and drive financial inclusion across Africa,” said Jeremy Awori, CEO of Ecobank Group. “By combining our robust banking infrastructure with Thunes’ fintech innovation and trusted Direct Global Network, we’re expanding real-time financial access for millions and driving the growth of Africa’s digital economy.”
The first market to commence operations under this pan-African partnership is Togo, where Ecobank customers can now benefit from instant payments from remittance players globally. This launch demonstrates the partnership's operational readiness as it prepares for systematic expansion across the continent.
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Contact:
For Thunes
Amelia Fairbairn, Headland, thunes@headlandconsultancy.com
Anna Birdsall-Strong, Director of Brand and Public Relations, anna.birdsall@thunes.com
For Ecobank
Christiane Bossom, Group Communications, groupcorporatecomms@ecobank.com
About Thunes:
Thunes is the Smart Superhighway to move money around the world. Thunes’ proprietary Direct Global Network allows Members to make payments in real-time in over 130 countries and more than 80 currencies. Thunes’ Network connects directly to over 7 billion mobile wallets and bank accounts worldwide, as well as 15 billion cards via more than 320 different payment methods, such as GCash, M-Pesa, Airtel, MTN, Orange, JazzCash, Easypaisa, AliPay, WeChat Pay HK and many more. Thunes’ Direct Global Network differentiates itself through its worldwide reach, in-house SmartX Treasury System and Fortress Compliance Platform, ensuring Members of the Network receive unrivaled speed, control, visibility, protection, and cost efficiencies when making real-time payments, globally. Members of Thunes’ Direct Global Network include gig economy giants like Uber and Deliveroo, super-apps like Grab and WeChat, MTOs, fintechs, PSPs and banks. Headquartered in Singapore, Thunes has offices in 14 locations, including Atlanta, Barcelona, Beijing, Dubai, Hong Kong, Johannesburg, London, Manila, Nairobi, Paris, Riyadh, San Francisco and Shanghai. For more information, visit: https://www.thunes.com/
About Ecobank Group (or ‘Ecobank Transnational Incorporated’ or ‘ETI’)
Ecobank Group is the leading private pan-African banking group with unrivalled African expertise. Present in 34 sub-Saharan African countries as well as France, the UK, UAE and China, its unique pan-African platform provides a single gateway for payments, cash management, trade and investment. The Group employs over 14,000 people and offers Consumer, Commercial, Corporate and Investment Banking products, services and solutions across multiple channels, including digital, to over 32 million customers.
For further information, please visit www.ecobank.com