Telecom
GSMA Launches a Mobile Money API Specification Compliance Service
GSMA, the global organisation unifying the mobile ecosystem, recently launched a Mobile Money API Compliance Verification Service; a quality assurance initiative which aims to reduce the complexities associated with scaling API integrations in the rapidly growing mobile money market.
The service, which will be free for companies providing mobile money services, is intended to support the growth of a trusted mobile money ecosystem in developing countries.
Africa leads the world in the adoption of mobile money services, and several African companies are the first mobile money API providers to enrol in the service. Sasai Fintech, with operations in Zimbabwe, Burundi and Lesotho, is now compliant with the GSMA Mobile Money API specification. AfriMoney will soon deploy their compliant APIs in Sierra Leone, DRC and the Gambia, alongside their technology partner, Comviva, which is also complying via their Mobiquity Pay mobile money platform.
In a statement, AfriMoney’s Group Director, Andy Widmann said “By working with the GSMA to comply with their Mobile Money API compliance verification service, we believe we can reduce the costs and time normally associated with API integrations.
We also believe that this will make it easier for third-party providers to partner with AfriMoney, thereby supporting further development of the digital ecosystem in our markets and increasing the number of products and services available to our customers.”
Mobile money continues to surge worldwide, with the amount of money being processed by the industry now passing the $1 trillion mark, according to the GSMA’s latest State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money.
Mobile money services can provide valuable support to communities, close societal divides, and deliver financial independence. The ability to conduct more complex financial transactions via mobile money meant the value of mobile money payments grew by 31% in 2021.
“Digital payment and fintech businesses continue to spur innovation, inclusion, and growth across the world. API integration is a key step in empowering consumers and businesses by simplifying integration and scaling the financial ecosystem.
“With our compliance against the GSMA’s Mobile Money API verification, we look forward to further strengthening our proposition to digital payment providers worldwide for delivering financial services solutions simply, securely and quickly”, commented Manoranjan ‘Mao’ Mohapatra, Chief Executive Officer at Comviva.
The new compliance service was developed by the GSMA’s Inclusive Tech Lab, which takes a hands-on approach to research, testing and development of the inclusive technologies of the future.
The Mobile Money API is an initiative developed through collaboration between the mobile money industry and the GSMA, aimed at helping the mobile money industry speak the same technical language by providing a modern harmonised API for mobile money transactions and management that is both easy to use and secure.
API providers who can demonstrate compliance will benefit from enhanced trust in their solutions by proving adherence to best practices in flexibility, scalability and security, helping them to attract third-party service providers to their platform.
Third-party service providers who wish to integrate with the API provider will in turn benefit from greater confidence and clarity during the integration process, and greater prospects for scale upon integration.
Alex Sinclair, the GSMA’s Chief Technology Officer, further commented on the benefits this new service will bring to the industry: “The GSMA is committed to supporting financial inclusion by encouraging the growth of a thriving ecosystem around Mobile Money platforms.
“This new service will enable all service providers to connect with each other in a simplified manner and reduce the lengthy and cumbersome Mobile Money API integration process.”
As more ecosystem players become compliant with a standard API specification, the more opportunities exist to scale solutions and grow the ecosystem.
Enhanced use cases can range from governments and NGOs distributing cash, to fin-tech companies providing cross-border remittances. If a solution is compliant it can integrate more easily with other compliant solutions, enhancing its potential to function across markets, systems and contexts.
The service is open to any API provider who wishes to comply with the GSMA Mobile Money API. This includes mobile money operators, technology platform providers, and service providers.
“We are delighted to have the GSMA Mobile Money API compliance mark of approval for merchant payments and bulk disbursements for the Sasai Super App. With this verification, we believe we will be able to simplify our integration process for partners and help more customers access our services.” Owen Takadiyi, Chief Marketing Officer, Sasai Fintech.
A ‘GSMA Mobile Money API Compliant’ mark will be granted to API providers that demonstrate compliance with this industry specification.
Compliance is determined by establishing that an API provider has implemented the API for use cases which are relevant to their business, and that they have met baseline security conformance for operational and API security.
For companies interested in becoming API compliant, the GSMA has also recently launched a new API Developer Portal, providing all the tools needed to embark on the compliance journey.
Clydestone Ghana Plc has filed a writ of summons and statement of claim against MTN Ghana, MTN Group Limited and Mobile Money Fintech Limited, alleging unauthorized use of its intellectual property.
The company announced the court action at the Ghana Stock Exchange, confirming proceedings in the Commercial Division of the High Court of Ghana.
The case relates to work commissioned in 2007 that Clydestone alleges was later used without authorisation or compensation.
Clydestone said the claim involves proprietary intellectual property, confidential commercial information and operational methodology developed during the engagement. The company is seeking declarations, damages and equitable remedies.
In a statement, Clydestone said MTN Ghana engaged it in 2007 to develop a commercial and operational framework for a mobile money business.
“The work was developed and delivered by the company’s founder and Group CEO, Paul Jacquaye, and included a full mobile money ecosystem covering the commercial model, operational architecture, implementation methodology and business case.”
Clydestone said the work was commissioned on the understanding that a non-disclosure agreement and memorandum of understanding would be signed.
It alleges these agreements were not finalised despite repeated requests.
The company further alleges MTN Ghana later used its proprietary work and methodology without authorisation or compensation, including in MTN Mobile Money Ghana and other markets.
Clydestone said the alleged use has continued since the launch of MTN Mobile Money Ghana in 2009.
“The wrongful use of that work has been ongoing since 2009. What has changed is the availability of independently verifiable information that documents its scale and commercial significance,” the company said.
It cited the GSMA State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2026 and MTN Ghana’s 2025 annual report as evidence of the platform’s scale.
According to Clydestone, the reports show approximately 19.3 million active users and annual revenue of about GHS 6.0 billion ($516m).
The company said it reviewed its records following these publications and concluded there were sufficient grounds to initiate legal proceedings.
It added that it has received no payment or acknowledgement for the work since December 2007, and that pre-action correspondence in 2026 received no substantive response.
“The Board of Directors has unanimously authorised the commencement of these proceedings,” the company said.
Jacquaye said: “This case is about accountability for commissioned intellectual property.
“When independent publications in 2025 and 2026 revealed the scale of the mobile money business, we reviewed all documentation relating to the original engagement and concluded these proceedings were necessary.”
MTN Group Limited, named as a defendant, had not commented at the time of publication.
In a development that underscores the fragile state of Nigeria’s telecommunications grid, an incident of infrastructure vandalism in Delta State has severely disrupted network connectivity, leaving thousands of subscribers stranded.
The breach, where a robber attacked the sites, occurred at an IHS-managed telecom node in the ASB region on July 8, 2026, immediately knocking 33 base stations offline across 2G, 3G, and 4G spectrums.
The situation in the region escalated drastically by morning when a separate fibre-optic cable cut severed primary transmission lines. Because the compromised node serves as a critical fibre convergence point, the secondary fibre cut triggered a cascading failure.
This secondary disruption ballooned the number of dark sites from 33 to 103, temporarily paralysing digital communications, banking, and commerce in the affected communities.
Industry sources reveal that the financial and logistical toll of such incidents is becoming unsustainable for Mobile Network Operators (MNOs).
Currently, network providers are utilising 20 per cent more spare parts than initially budgeted for the fiscal year.
This unpredictable depletion of technical reserves has stripped operators of their supply buffers, making inventory management and financial forecasting increasingly difficult for telecom executives.
Consequently, engineering teams have been forced to cannibalise materials originally designated for network expansion and new site rollouts just to perform emergency restorations on the damaged sites.
This diversion of resources significantly delays the rollout of new infrastructure, stifling the nation’s broader broadband penetration targets and stalling anticipated revenue generation for the telecom companies.
The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) recently noted an average of 1,744 weekly attacks on telecom infrastructure nationwide, including over 1,100 fibre cuts.
As operators endure protracted back-and-forth negotiations with insurance firms to cover these sudden hardware losses, stakeholders are intensifying calls for the strict enforcement of the Federal Government’s recent designation of telecom assets as Critical National Information Infrastructure (CNII) to safeguard Quality of Service (QoS).
Viral rumors about a “Tesla Pi Phone” a new phone, being developed by Elon Musk, CEO and largest shareholder of Tesla and SpaceX, are entirely fake.
AI Generated Tesla Pi Phone and Elon Musk
Instead, the tech giant said on Monday it has filed an application with the US Federal Communications Commission for permission to deploy the constellation by 2028.
It said the system would provide voice, messaging, data and emergency services.
A quick fact-check revealed that Tesla Inc. has never manufactured, developed, or released a smartphone.
Videos and articles claiming a release (often priced between $150 and $800 with solar charging or satellite-only connections) rely on AI-generated concept art and recycled internet hoaxes dating back to 2021.
Musk has only mentioned a phone in hypothetical remarks, stating Tesla would build one only if major app stores completely blocked or censored essential apps like X (formerly Twitter).
On Monday however, his company said that “Amazon looks forward to delivering on the promise of D2D [direct-to-device] connectivity, including to the millions of people living, travelling and working in places beyond the reach of existing networks today,”
The filing is the first step from Amazon into satellite mobile connections, which has until now been dominated by SpaceX’s Starlink service.
Musk’s group has signed partnerships with existing operators such as T-Mobile US and the UK’s Virgin Media O2 to provide phone services for customers where their conventional networks do not reach.
Starlink operates across more than 150 countries, offering high-speed internet connections through its constellation of satellites.
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