. Most new registered accounts from Nigeria, SSA
Over $2 trillion flowed through mobile money wallets globally in 2025, the Global System for Mobile Telecommunications Association (GSMA) has said.

GSMA described the trend as an important threshold that exemplifies the exponential growth in transaction value the industry experienced in recent years.

It said it took 20 years to pass $1 trillion in yearly transaction values, but just four years for the figure to double.

Between 2022 and 2024, transaction volumes grew faster than transaction values, which led to a drop in the average transaction value, from $18.6 in 2021 to $15.9 in 2024.

In 2025, transaction value growth (23 per cent) outpaced volume growth (16 per cent) for the first time in four years, leading to a rise in average transaction values, the GSMA said.

The telecom body noted that from inception, only 25 years ago, mobile money has now become a mainstream financial service for underserved populations around the world, empowering those without access to traditional banking services and contributing to economic growth in countries where mobile money is present.

The 14th State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2026 also found that mobile money reached 2.3 billion registered accounts in 2025, growing by 268 million.

GSMA Director-General, Vivek Badrinath, said: “Mobile money has become one of the world’s most impactful financial services. What began as a simple way to move money has evolved into a global financial ecosystem, reshaping how hundreds of millions of people manage their financial lives.

“The market is reaching new heights and greater maturity. Adoption and regular use are surging, and value is scaling even faster than volume, with more than $2 trillion flowing through mobile money in 2025 – doubling from the first trillion in just four years.

“Looking ahead, the industry’s growing scale and sophistication will bring new opportunities and new responsibilities. By prioritising interoperability and cross border harmonisation, engaging in digital public infrastructure, strengthening consumer protection and fraud controls and accelerating women’s inclusion and financial health outcomes, we can ensure mobile money continues to provide safe, inclusive and sustainable digital financial services.”

GSMA said regular mobile money usage has increased worldwide over the past year, with active 30-day accounts rising by 15 per cent to 593 million.

It revealed that most new registered and active accounts came from Sub-Saharan Africa, although almost every region where mobile money is offered experienced a rise. This has led to monthly usage of mobile money accounts growing by half a percentage point to 25.7 per cent, the highest it has been since 2021.

However, this still leaves almost 75 per cent of accounts inactive monthly, with fraud remaining widespread and transaction taxes often encouraging users to revert to cash in the countries where they’re in effect, negatively impacting financial inclusion.
SSA had 174 live mobile money services in 2025, with 1.2 billion registered accounts.

The telecom body said that through more frequent usage, mobile money users can improve their financial health – the capacity to manage day-to-day financial needs, withstand shocks and invest in the future – by benefiting from the increasing provision of adjacent services like credit, savings and insurance.

The report found that the number of mobile money providers offering insurance increased by one-third in 2025. Mobile-money-enabled credit remains the most widely offered adjacent financial service, and this is nearly matched by those offering savings options.
Regulation is playing a key role in expanding the reach of mobile money, according to the GSMA.

According to it, over 60 per cent of mobile money providers believe that interoperability, know-your-customer and consumer protection regulations have supported their operations.

Although more must be done to support the industry, significant regulatory issues remain – particularly cross-border data transfer regulations, which 24 per cent of mobile money providers report have hindered their operations.

The body observed that with a supportive regulatory environment, the mobile money industry will be able to continue growing and, in turn, advance financial inclusion, especially among groups that have traditionally lacked access to banking services.

This is vital as a wide gender gap persists in mobile money account ownership across seven out of 10 countries surveyed in the report. Aside from in Ghana, Kenya and Nigeria, women who own a mobile money account are still less likely than men to have used it within the past month.

In addition to accelerating financial inclusion and supporting improved financial health, mobile money usage is enabling wider social and humanitarian benefits by enabling rapid payouts during crises, particularly in remote regions. However, for these and other use cases to succeed, mobile money needs to be complemented by digital financial literacy initiatives to continue responsible growth across regions and demographics.