NALA integrates Apple Pay for diaspora payments into Africa

Last week, TechCabal reported that NALA, a Tanzanian-born fintech startup with a growing dominance in East Africa, made a pioneering move in Africa’s fintech space by enabling its African diaspora users to make local payments directly. Now, the fintech has announced another breakthrough for its customers: They can now make payments from the UK and US via Apple Pay.

This newest integration with world payment service, Apple Pay, reaffirms NALA’s ambition to enable seamless and “lightning-fast payments” to Africa. Apple Pay is an advanced mobile payment service developed by Apple Inc that digitises card payments and is optimised for contactless in-store payments. With over 45 million users in the US alone, the payment service is a go-to for many people in countries like the US and UK, which are countries where NALA’s users are. 

NALA’s integration with Apple Pay comes seven months after the African fintech launched operations in the US with an event held in New York, attended by six members of the Tanzanian parliament. 

Speaking on the latest integration, Benjamin Fernandes, NALA’s founder and CEO, said that NALA’s moves are geared towards connecting Africa with global payment options while building a rich financial infrastructure for Africans.

“NALA’s mission is to increase economic opportunities for Africans globally, enabling Apple Pay is a step towards connecting more global payment options with Africa. This reach allows us to build stronger financial infrastructure for Africans worldwide,” he said in a statement shared with TechCabal.

NALA’s customers in the US and UK can access the Apple Pay feature on the NALA app, which enables payout to over 300 banks and 20 mobile money players in Africa. 

To date, only a handful of African fintechs, including Nigeria’s Paystack and South Africa’s Peach Payments, have been able to integrate Apple Pay into their products. Flutterwave, the Nigerian fintech unicorn, promised in February that it would integrate Apple pay into its suite of payment options. But that feature is yet to be rolled out. 

With its product roadmap accessible to all, NALA is keen on improving how Africans, both at home and in the diaspora, experience financial technology services. At its core, the company is empowering people with control over their finances and powering a seamless and transparent experience while at it.