UBA Kenya and Cellulant Kenya launch payments gateway to accelerate adoption of cashless payments
NAIROBI, Kenya, May 10, 2022/ — The volume of global cashless transactions is set to grow by more than 80% between 2020 and 2025 according to the Payments 2025 & Beyond Report by PWC. In recent years, individuals and businesses alike have adopted digital payments reshaping the entire payments infrastructure.
“Organizations are increasingly going cashless; from global businesses such as airlines to local restaurants, or instagram businesses and schools,” remarked Faith Nkatha, Country Manager, Cellulant Kenya at a UBA Kenya and Cellulant customer launch event.
Happening at the Norfolk Hotel on Tuesday, 10th May 2022, the Kenya event followed the Pan-African Group partnership between The United Bank for Africa PLC and leading Pan-African payments company Cellulant announced in March 2022.
From left to right: Mr Chike Isiuwe- UBA Kenya CEO, Mary Mulili – UBA Kenya Executive Director, Faith Nkatha – Country Manager – Kenya, Cellulant, David Waithaka – Chief Revenue Officer, Cellulant
Speaking to trends in payment behaviors, Faith said “How organizations and businesses make and collect payments has radically shifted in the last two or three years. Students or parents queuing to make payments at the bursar, churches giving envelopes to collect offerings, restaurants receiving cash payments or real estate agents going round to collect rent; all these are quickly becoming outdated as collection methods.”
The event brought together some 30 institutions across the FMCG, insurance, education, diplomatic and the public sectors, showcasing the new digital platform that will provide a seamless way to make payments, manage collections and reconciliations. The digital solution is set to help businesses aggregate payments in a single view which will assist in efficient collection, reconciliation and quick decision making.
Speaking on the partnership, Mr Chike Isiuwe, The CEO, UBA Kenya said:
“At UBA Kenya, customer experience remains our key focus and this partnership ensures that we constantly provide easy, efficient and timely innovative solutions to meet the ever changing needs of our customers. This solution will change how individuals make payment and how merchants and institutions collect as it eases the process while also reducing transaction costs.”
UBA Kenya which started operations in Kenya in October 2009 with a business focus on local and international Corporates, SME’s, Public and Private Institutions. Over the years the Bank has grown its footprint to 5 branches across the country with recently opened branches in Nakuru and Mombasa. UBA Kenya has an ambitious growth strategy which includes expansion in key towns in Kenya as well as upscaling of its digital solutions through the Bank’s new Innovation Hub at their new Head Office at Imperial Court, Westlands.
“Digitisation plays a pivotal role in the financial lives of Kenyans today and the platform aligns with current customer payment behaviors and is expected to spur growth for local businesses, contributing positively to the expansion of the country’s economy.” added Mr. Chike.
Mary Mulili UBA Kenya Executive Director with Faith Nkatha Cellulant Country Manager Kenya
Cellulant, founded in 2003, has an extensive payments infrastructure partnering with 46 mobile-money operators in Africa, 211 banks including UBA Group and serves 35 African countries with a physical presence in 18.
“Fintechs and banks collaborations open more opportunities that make the movement of money easier for businesses and their consumers across all sectors of the economy. Through strategic partnerships, Cellulant is accelerating the drive for financial inclusion and economic wellbeing in Kenya and across the African continent. Our partnership with UBA in Kenya will enable merchants to receive, view, and reconcile all their payments via a single application programming interface (API), cutting out the need to sign up for multiple payment providers,” Faith Nkatha Gitonga, Country Manager, Cellulant Kenya.
This timely Forum comes on the heels of commitments announced by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, deepening Canada–Africa commercial ties and expanding investment partnerships
TORONTO, Canada, April 29, 2026/APO Group/ –The Canada–Africa Chamber of Business (https://CanadaAfrica.ca) will convene investors, financiers, policymakers, and industry leaders in Cape Town on May 14, 2026 for the Canada–Africa Financing Forum—a high-level platform focused on unlocking capital and accelerating deal flow across African markets.
This timely Forum comes on the heels of commitments announced by Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney, deepening Canada–Africa commercial ties and expanding investment partnerships. The program connects leaders from venture capital, private equity, and institutional investors to examine where capital is moving—and where the next opportunities lie—supported by Canadian project partners with proven capacity to deliver on-the-ground.
Delegates will engage directly with finance and investment decision-makers, following the program opening, featuring messages from President Cyril Ramaphosa and Prime Minister Mark Carney, in addition to high-level Ministerial representation.
This Forum is about capital deployment, not just conversation
“This Forum is about capital deployment, not just conversation,” said Garreth Bloor, President of the Canada–Africa Chamber of Business. “We are convening investors, institutions, and project leaders who are actively shaping transactions across Africa—and connecting them directly with Canadian partners who are ready to work together.”
The Canada–Africa Financing Forum reflects the Chamber’s role as a privately financed, market-led platform advancing Canada-Africa trade and investment through world-class networking and information-sharing events.
Why Attend
Direct access to active dealmakers and capital allocators
Insights into where capital is being deployed and key players delivering major projects
Opportunities to build partnerships across Canada and African markets
Participation in a curated, high-level environment focused on execution
During the MASA 2026 edition, held from April 11 to 18, 2026, ORUN and 1xBET implemented the We Champion Talent program, an initiative aimed at promoting African talent and advancing the development of Cultural and Creative Industries (CCIs)
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, April 28, 2026/APO Group/ –As part of the Innovation Village co-organized with MASA at the Palais de la Culture in Abidjan from April 14 to 18, ORUN (https://ORUN.Africa) announces the rollout of its partnership with 1xBET to support a creative Africa that is structuring itself, professionalizing, and scaling across the continent.
We aim to demonstrate that it is possible to support African talent, narratives, and creative ecosystems over the long term, with ambition and consistency
Designed as a space of convergence between heritage, innovation, and knowledge transmission, the Innovation Village features scenography crafted by Ivorian artisans, a program of panels and masterclasses on creative industries, an immersive experience produced by Orun Studios, and a major institutional highlight on April 17. Its narrative platform is built around three pillars: memory, structure, and transmission. The initiative aims to position cultural and creative industries as an economic driver for the continent.
“The Innovation Village was conceived as an act of construction. By partnering with organizations such as 1xBET, we aim to demonstrate that it is possible to support African talent, narratives, and creative ecosystems over the long term, with ambition and consistency,” said Habyba Thiero, CEO of Africa Currency Network and President of ORUN.
This vision aligns with ORUN’s broader ambition to produce, structure, and internationalize African creative industries through events, content, and strategic partnerships.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of ORUN, part of African Currency Network (ACN).
More than event support, this partnership reflects a commitment to backing platforms capable of structuring value chains, increasing the visibility of talent, and fostering the emergence of strong African creative infrastructures
ABIDJAN, Ivory Coast, April 28, 2026/APO Group/ –On the occasion of MASA 2026, held from April 11 to 18 in Abidjan, MIR Holding (https://MIRHolding.odoo.com) reaffirmed its commitment to supporting the growth of African creative industries by partnering with ORUN as part of the Innovation Village, hosted at the Palais de la Culture in Abidjan. This presence reflects a clear intention to support the scaling of cultural and creative industries so they can fully contribute to job creation and value generation across the continent.
Co-organized by ORUN and MASA, the Innovation Village brought together over several days scenography designed by Ivorian artisans, a program of panels and masterclasses dedicated to creative industries, an immersive experience produced by Orun Studios, and a key institutional highlight on April 17.
At MIR Holding, we believe that Africa’s future will also be shaped by its ability to structure its narratives, its talent, and its creative value chains
Built around three pillars — memory, structure, and transmission — the initiative carried a renewed ambition for culture: positioning it as a concrete lever for economic structuring and African projection.
By supporting this initiative, MIR Holding aligns with a broader dynamic aimed at strengthening connections between creation, entrepreneurship, content, youth, and growth ecosystems. More than event support, this partnership reflects a commitment to backing platforms capable of structuring value chains, increasing the visibility of talent, and fostering the emergence of strong African creative infrastructures. MIR Holding stands among the main partners of the Village, alongside Africa Currency Network and other stakeholders engaged in this vision.
“With ORUN, we are not only seeking to make culture visible. We aim to help provide it with a framework, a reach, and a trajectory. What is at stake here is the continent’s ability to better transform its creative energy into sustainable value, real opportunities, and influence,” said Habyba Thiero, CEO of Africa Currency Network and President of ORUN.
Mouhamed Dieng, President of MIR Holding, added: “Supporting Africa’s creative industries is not about backing a secondary sector. It is about investing in one of the continent’s most powerful spaces for storytelling, youth, innovation, and competitiveness. At MIR Holding, we believe that Africa’s future will also be shaped by its ability to structure its narratives, its talent, and its creative value chains.”
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of MIR Holding.
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