MTN Cameroon subsidiary Mobile Money Corporation has increased MTN MoMo capital from 50 million Francs CFA to 850 million Francs CFA, according to a legal notice made public on 14 July 2020.

The increase in operating capital is in response to the need to meet up with banking regulations.

According to Regulation R-2019/02 of the Central African Banking Commission (COBAC), relating to prudential norms applicable to payment services providers, it is mandatory for operators to have a capital of at least 500 million Francs CFA.

MTN MoMo’s main competitor, Orange Money runs on a capital of 1.2 billion Francs CFA.

The changes at Mobile Money Corporation also impacted management. MTN Cameroon, MTN International and Broadband Telecom Ltd were replaced as administrators of MTN MoMo by the incumbent CEO of MTN Cameroon Hendrik Kasteel and banker Ebenezer Essoka, who were each given a mandate of six years.

Alain Claude Nono was retained as Director of MTN MoMo, and consultancy firm Deloitte & Touche has been retained as external auditor.

Last year, MTN MoMo was awarded GSMA Mobile Money certification for conformity to best practices in the sector.

MTN MoMo presently has the most extensive financial mobile network in Cameroon with a network of more than 70,000 withdrawal points across the country’s ten administrative regions.

While returning to growth in 2019, after four years of decline, MTN Cameroon recorded circa 8 million MoMo subscribers.

The service is closely rivalled by Orange Money managed by Orange Cameroun, while Nexttel’s own mobile money service - Possa – is still being developed.