AXIAN rebrands fintech arm in digital banking push across Africa

AXIAN, a pan-African infrastructure and services group operating in five sectors including telecom and digital banking, has rebranded its fintech cluster, formerly Axian Open Innovation & Fintech, to AXIAN Digibank & Fintech, marking its shift from a mobile-money operator into a full digital banking ecosystem to serve individuals and businesses across Africa. 

The company said the new cluster will expand its mandate beyond payments to the broader financial services that individuals and small and medium enterprises (SMEs) increasingly demand but cannot access through mobile money alone. According to the World Bank, access to banking services grew in recent years across Africa, driven by mobile money and digital banking platforms.

AXIAN’s shift comes at a moment when African consumers and SMEs are demanding more than wallet-based transfers, pushing fintechs to provide credit, savings and other bank-grade services. It believes the new cluster gives it the structure to build those products and compete in a market where users now expect more than transfers.

The cluster brings together AXIAN’s financial services operations, including MVola and Mixx, the company’s flagship fintech products, which help individuals and businesses send money, pay merchants and access short-term credit across Madagascar, Comoros, Tanzania, Togo and Senegal. AXIAN says the new structure will allow it to integrate these services more deeply and build the long-term financial products African markets are demanding, including credit and savings, insurance, investments and cross-border transactions.

“With AXIAN Digibank & Fintech, we are entering a new chapter, one where mobile money evolves into full digital banking,” Erwan Gelebart, CEO of AXIAN Digibank & Fintech, said. “This transformation is about scaling impact, giving millions of Africans affordable access to the financial tools they need to grow, thrive, and shape tomorrow’s economy.”

Under the new cluster, the company constituted a new board including former N26 executive Georg Hauer, mobile-money pioneer Brad Jones and former Madagascar central bank governor Henri Rabarijohn. AXIAN says bringing in operators with global digital banking experience is essential as it expands into more sophisticated and capital-intensive services.

“As we scale into full-spectrum financial service providers, the calibre and diversity of our Board is vital to ensuring disciplined innovation, responsible governance, and pan-African impact,” Gelebart added.

The company did not disclose whether new capital is backing the transition, but said it is pursuing partnerships to support its scale. It added that its revenue mix is from transaction and payment fees and financial services.

SMEs sit at the centre of its strategy under the new cluster. The company said it already serves nearly 500,000 merchants monthly and wants to reach millions by 2030 through restocking credit, improved payment terms and cross-border settlement tools. AXIAN believes these services can move SMEs from cash-based operations, which it considers its largest competition, into structured financing that supports expansion and job creation.

The company plans to scale longer-tenor loans, insurance, investments and eventually mortgages; these products, it said, are scarce in its operating markets. It acknowledges the technical and regulatory hurdles, especially around issuing higher-ticket loans digitally and managing risk across countries, but says automation and AI-driven underwriting will be crucial to supporting scale.

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