MTN Uganda shareholders have approved a plan to separate the mobile money business from the main telecommunications company, paving the way for the creation of a new fintech entity. The decision, made during an extraordinary general meeting, is part of a broader move by MTN Group to establish a separate company for its financial technology services.
The separation, which has been in the works since 2020, aims to transition mobile money operations into a larger fintech company, FinCo, which will consolidate MTN’s mobile money businesses across Africa. MTN believes this new structure will foster growth, improve efficiency, and attract investors who understand financial services regulations.
MTN Chairman Charles Mbiiire stated Tuesday that “Fintech is different. It needs freedom and flexibility to grow. By separating it, we are giving it room to innovate and lead.”
Leading up to the decision, MTN engaged with shareholders nationwide through town hall meetings to explain the plan and address concerns, which helped secure their support.
Following the extraordinary general meeting, MTN announced it had received official approval to proceed with the structural separation of its mobile money unit.
MTN Mobile Money was launched in 2009. In 2021, MTN Uganda took its first step by legally separating its mobile money unit under the National Payment Systems Act. The current step involves transforming the mobile money business into an independent fintech company.
Ms. Sylvia Mulinge, MTN’s chief executive officer, described this as the second phase of a three-step journey. The final step will involve listing the new fintech company on the Uganda Securities Exchange within three to five years. The new company will be majority-owned by MTN Group Fintech Holdings B.V., with the remaining shares held in trust for Ugandan investors.
