Bank accounts used by Orange Money Cameroon and Mobile Money Corporation Cameroon (MTN MoMo) to hold funds linked to customer transactions generated CFA21.5 billion in reported interest income, according to the 2025 report of Cameroon’s National Economic and Financial Committee (CNEF), published on October 2, 2026. Orange Money accounted for CFA9.9 billion of that amount, while MTN MoMo received CFA11.6 billion. As of December 31, 2025, the two companies held CFA193 billion and CFA280 billion, respectively, in dedicated bank accounts, for a combined CFA473 billion.

The figures, provided by the Central African Banking Commission (COBAC) and published in Table 3.31 of the report, reveal a source of revenue separate from the fees charged on mobile money transfers, withdrawals, and payments. They also identify the banks that hold these funds and the interest rates paid to the two mobile money providers.

The system is governed by CEMAC Regulation No. 04/18 of December 21, 2018, on payment services. When a customer adds money to a mobile wallet, the underlying funds remain the customer’s property. Amounts that have not yet been transferred to their intended recipients must be placed in dedicated bank accounts no later than the following day. Payment institutions cannot use these funds to finance their own operations or extend loans.

Article 54 of the regulation nevertheless states that “the safeguarding account earns interest paid by the account-holding bank to the payment institution.” The terms are determined by an agreement between the bank and the payment provider.

Article 9, however, prohibits payment service providers from paying interest to users on funds received in exchange for electronic money. This means mobile money companies can earn interest on the bank accounts that safeguard customer funds without having to pay interest on their customers’ mobile wallet balances.

AFG, Ecobank, CCA and Access Among the Main Banks Holding the Funds

Orange Money Cameroon distributes its CFA193 billion across nine banks. AFG Bank Cameroon holds the largest amount, at CFA56.9 billion, followed by Ecobank Cameroon with CFA39.6 billion and BGFI Bank Cameroon with CFA28.5 billion. Together, these three banks account for nearly 65% of Orange Money’s safeguarded funds.

SCB Cameroon follows with CFA22.5 billion, UBA Cameroon with CFA18 billion, and Access Bank with CFA11.1 billion. CCA Bank, Société Générale Cameroon, and BICEC hold CFA7.6 billion, CFA5.9 billion, and CFA3 billion, respectively. MTN MoMo has a different distribution. CCA Bank holds the largest share of its funds, at CFA58.5 billion, followed by Afriland First Bank with CFA53.9 billion and Access Bank with CFA49.3 billion.

The report also lists CFA47.5 billion under the name “AFB Bank,” without explaining how this entry differs from Afriland First Bank. UBA holds CFA36.4 billion, while Ecobank accounts for CFA34.5 billion.

Four banks appear on both operators’ lists. Ecobank holds a combined CFA74.1 billion in safeguarded funds from Orange Money and MTN MoMo, followed by CCA Bank with CFA66.1 billion, Access Bank with CFA60.4 billion, and UBA with CFA54.4 billion. These figures show that mobile money providers maintain financial relationships with several competing banks, which pay them interest in exchange for holding the funds.

A comparison with bank balance sheets helps illustrate the size of these deposits. The CFA60.4 billion held at Access Bank is mathematically equivalent to 22.2% of the bank’s CFA272.5 billion in reported gross deposits at the end of 2025. At Ecobank, the CFA74.1 billion represents 16.1% of its CFA461.6 billion in deposits recorded at the same date.

These comparisons provide a sense of the importance of mobile money funds on bank balance sheets. They do not, however, establish how stable those resources are or how much of the money the banks can actually use.

Interest Rates Reach 6.6%

Interest rates vary considerably from one bank to another. For Orange Money, BGFI Bank Cameroon offers the highest rate at 6.6%, followed by CCA Bank at 6.5% and AFG Bank at 6%. Ecobank and UBA each offer 5.3%, Access Bank pays 5.2%, SCB Cameroon 4.8%, Société Générale Cameroon 4.7%, and BICEC 3%.

In terms of reported interest payments to Orange Money, AFG Bank ranks first with CFA3.1 billion. BGFI Bank and Ecobank follow with CFA1.9 billion each, ahead of SCB Cameroon with CFA1.1 billion. The other individual interest payments disclosed in the report are each below CFA1 billion. MTN MoMo also receives different rates depending on the bank. Afriland First Bank and Access Bank each offer 5.5%, while the entry labeled “AFB Bank” shows a range of 5.75% to 6%.

CCA Bank applies rates between 5% and 6.5%, Ecobank offers between 4.35% and 5.10%, and UBA pays 5%.

The highest reported interest payment to MTN MoMo comes from the entry labeled “AFB Bank,” at CFA2.4 billion. Access Bank follows with CFA2.3 billion, while UBA accounts for CFA1.9 billion. Afriland First Bank and CCA Bank each paid CFA1.8 billion, compared with CFA1.4 billion from Ecobank.

The differences in interest payments cannot be explained by the published rates alone. The reported safeguarded balances reflect amounts held on December 31, 2025, while interest payments depend on contractual terms and the balances used to calculate interest. The report does not specify the average balances used in those calculations or the exact reference period for each bank’s interest payments. It is therefore not possible to determine the effective annual return under each agreement.

Safeguarded Funds Exceed Customer Balances by CFA81.4 Billion

COBAC data also show that the amounts held in dedicated bank accounts exceed the funds received from customers. Orange Money reported CFA193 billion in bank accounts against CFA162.3 billion received from users, giving it a coverage ratio of 119%. At MTN MoMo, CFA280 billion in safeguarded funds covered CFA229.3 billion in customer funds, equivalent to a coverage ratio of 122%.

The difference amounts to CFA30.7 billion for Orange Money and CFA50.7 billion for MTN MoMo, or a combined CFA81.4 billion. The report does not explain what makes up these additional amounts. Based on the published figures alone, they cannot be treated as profits or funds that the two companies are free to use.

Regulations require payment institutions to reconcile customer funds with safeguarded bank balances every day. They also require these accounts to remain separate from the institutions’ other accounts and allow the amounts to be identified by individual account holder. The interest earned by payment providers therefore comes from a system designed to protect customer funds and ensure that money remains available for users’ transactions.

An important question remains: how much do these interest payments contribute to the financial performance of Orange Money and MTN MoMo? The CNEF report discloses the interest income received but does not provide a detailed breakdown of its accounting treatment, associated expenses, potential taxes, or contribution to net profit. Nor does it establish whether financial transfers occur between the payment institutions and their affiliated telecommunications companies, or how much such transfers might represent.

This source of financial income comes from a mobile money market where transaction volumes continue to rise. According to the same report, Orange Money and MTN MoMo processed transactions worth CFA32.667 trillion in Cameroon in 2025, up 13.7% from the previous year. Orange Money accounted for CFA17.176 trillion in transactions, compared with CFA15.491 trillion for MTN MoMo. Despite processing a higher annual transaction value, Orange Money held less money in safeguarded bank accounts than its competitor at the end of the year.

The available data do not explain the difference between the operators’ annual transaction volumes and their year-end bank balances.

Source: Business in Cameroon