MTN Bets on Fintech Veteran to Transform MoMo Payments

Telecom giant MTN has appointed Bode Abifarin, former COO of Flutterwave, as the new managing director and CEO of its MoMo Payment Service Bank (PSB) in Nigeria. This strategic move signals a significant push to revitalize the mobile money business that has consistently underperformed despite early promise.

Launched in 2022 with high expectations, MoMo PSB was envisioned as MTN’s fintech crown jewel in its most important market. However, instead of thriving, it has become a persistent challenge for the company. Recent financial statements revealed a NGN 62.56 billion (USD 46.7 million) impairment on fintech investments, including MoMo PSB and Yello Digital Financial Services.

Abifarin brings over two decades of experience in financial services, consulting, and digital payments to the role. Her tenure at Flutterwave saw the company scale across multiple African markets before its eventual exit. She now inherits a business with 3.7 million active wallets—far short of MTN’s target of 30-40 million users.

The appointment comes amid broader restructuring efforts, including plans to sell a 60% stake in MoMo PSB and Yello Digital Financial Services to MTN Group for NGN 152.06 billion. The company is also pursuing a technology partnership with Ant International (Alipay’s global arm) to rebuild the MoMo platform into a super app.

Industry analysts suggest that Nigerian telcos have struggled to compete in the mobile money space against more agile fintech firms like OPay and Moniepoint, which have captured significant market share. MTN’s payment service bank license restricts certain services offered by competitors.

With her experience building Flutterwave from the ground up, Abifarin faces the challenge of leveraging MTN’s vast telecom infrastructure to create a compelling mobile money offering that resonates with Nigerian consumers.