This article is dedicated only to African forex traders that are looking for forex brokers who accept the use of mobile money for forex deposits and withdrawals. But first, what is mobile money all about?
Mobile money refers to money stored in an account that is operated by telecom companies, in which the user’s mobile phone and other telephony details such as the phone number are integral components of the transaction process. This is possible because phone numbers are unique in themselves, and every phone device comes with a unique International Mobile Equipment (IMEI) number. The unique nature of phone numbers can be enhanced by subjecting each user to biometric registration, in which physical traits that cannot be replicated in any other human being such as the fingerprint, are captured and assigned to the phone number. That way, a user can perform financial transactions over a mobile network using the phone number as a unique identification number, just the way every bank customer would have a unique bank account number, cheque books or savings passbooks of years gone by.
The mobile money payment channel is very common in Africa, especially in Ghana, Kenya, Cameroon, Rwanda, Uganda and Tanzania, where it is used as a tool for financial inclusion. Many African countries and indeed countries of the Middle East have large unbanked populations. Accessing services such as a forex trading account require financial inclusion, where a user of the financial system can be identified and the individual’s financial history can be profiled, in compliance with international laws against money laundering.
What Forex brokers accept Mobile Money
The number of forex brokers that accept mobile money for deposits and withdrawals is still relatively low. Despite this fact, there are already a couple of solid forex brokers who work with mobile money.
Remember that forex and CFDs available at Exness and IQ Option are leveraged products and can result in the loss of your entire capital. Please ensure you fully understand the risks involved.
¹ Variable spreads vary according to the current market conditions, recorded for EUR/USD on 06.05.2020 at 10:42 GMT+1.
Forex Brokers and Mobile Money
With the passage of the European Securities and Markets Authority (ESMA) rules of 2018, it has become very expensive for traders to open and operate trading accounts with UK and EU forex brokers. This has led to a mass migration of traders to so-called offshore locations and loss of business for many of these EU brokers. The loss of business has hit many of them so badly, that their loud protests have caught the attention of the European Commission, which has instituted a process to review the MiFID II protocols that ESMA derives its regulatory powers from.
Some EU brokerages have been able to adapt to the situation by creating international divisions to handle clients from outside the EU. Africa represents a huge opportunity for forex brokers because the penetration of forex trading on the continent is relatively low. However, there is a large unbanked population in the African market. For the unbanked, mobile money represents one of the major means of transaction. This has led to a slight increase in the number of forex brokers that accept mobile money for transactions. Kenya and Ghana are two countries where the use of mobile money is very high.
Forex brokers that accept mobile money in Ghana have an advantage because even those who operate bank accounts also have access to mobile money. Mobile money usage in Ghana is driven by telecom companies such as Airtel/Tigo, MTN and Glo. In Kenya on the other hand, the most popular mobile money payment system is Vodafone’s M-Pesa.
Mobile Money As a Funding Method
To be able to get registered on a mobile money network, the user must have a phone number, with a registered SIM card matched to the user by means of biometrics. This provides an infallible means of identification, allowing the user to perform transactions on the mobile phone.
Forex brokers that accept mobile money in Ghana or other African countries are then able to accept deposits in the local currency, for instance, in the Ghana Cedis (GHS). Withdrawals are also conducted in the local currency. Users have the option of operating forex accounts in the local currency (if the broker allows it), or they can still maintain foreign currency accounts, in which case the appropriate conversion rates and charges are applied.
Since the mobile money registration process also incorporates biometric registration, all data can be harmonized and checked by the brokerage’s compliance department to ensure that appropriate Know-Your-Customer (KYC) protocols are followed.
Forex Broker Exness and Mobile money in Ghana, Uganda, Cameroon and Rwanda
One of the most popular forex brokers in Africa – Exness accept mobile money deposit and withdrawals in Ghana, Uganda, Cameroon and Rwanda. Here are the conditions that apply in these countries when using mobile money.
| Ghana | Uganda | Cameroon | Rwanda | |
| Minimum deposit | USD 10 | USD 10 | USD 10 | USD 10 |
| Minimum withdrawal | USD 10 | USD 10 | USD 5 | USD 2 |
| Maximum deposit | USD 300 per transaction | USD 1 050 per transaction | USD 940 per transaction | USD 1 700 per transaction |
| Maximum withdrawal | USD 300 per transaction | USD 1 050 per transaction | USD 940 per transaction | USD 1 700 per transaction |
| Deposit and Withdrawal processing time | Instant* | Instant* | Instant* | Instant* |
| Deposit and withdrawal processing fees | Free of charge | Free of charge | Free of charge | Free of charge |
*The term “instant” indicates that a transaction will be carried out within 3 hours for deposits and 24 hours for withdrawals without manual processing by our financial department specialists. Note that these limits are checked in their USD equivalent based on live exchange rates.
Benefits of Using a Forex Broker That Accepts Mobile money
The benefits of using an FX broker that accepts mobile money are as follows:
- a) Very fast deposits and withdrawals: Transaction times are very fast, as transfers are processed in a matter of minutes.
- b) It is a cashless method that allows the user to transact without carrying money.
- c) The convenience of this transaction method is virtually unrivalled. A country like Ghana has mobile money outlets on virtually every street. You can simply walk into a vendor’s shop, deposit Ghana Cedis with the vendor, have your mobile money wallet funded and you proceed to fund your forex account.
- d) No need to fill any forms and there is no waiting time. You can do your forex account funding anytime, including weekends and holidays.
Drawbacks of Using a Forex Broker That Accepts Mobile Money
What are the drawbacks of using forex brokers that accept mobile money?
- a) Initial sign-up processes can be a hassle. There are instances of registration failure due to problems with the internet network.
- b) Forex brokers that accept mobile money are relatively few. This narrows the user’s choice of brokers.
Choosing a Forex Broker That Accepts Mobile money
Presently, the number of forex brokers accepting mobile money in Ghana and around Africa are few. However, this could change quickly as more brokers are entering the African market. For a user, make sure to use online forums and other information sources to get a first-hand account on the experience others have had with the mobile money transaction process. You can also check the table above to see some of the most popular FX brokers that are accepting mobile money.
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Do these forex brokers use Airtel Money?
Yes, they do, I believe they should also accept deposits and withdrawals from M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa, Equitel, MTN Mobile Money and Ecocash.
Exness still has a problem with mobile money transactions… It’s almost like they want to stop it
Hello sir I want to invest on mobile money thank you so much
Hello Fati,
If you want to start trading using mobile money, you can go ahead with brokers that accept this payment method (some of the brokers that support mobile money are listed in the article)
There isn’t any Mobile Money Payment option in the Exness trading app, is there?
Hello Ammanuel,
Since the broker supports mobile money, this option should be also available in the Exness trading app too. If you don’t see it there, please contact the Exness customer support and they will help you out.
Any one from Nigeria or Cameroon here can contact me for that there brokers of mt5 with agents doing deposit through mobile money and Airtel
Hi
does iqoption allows trading on metatrader softwares?
No, IQ Option does not support MT4 (nor MT5). If you are looking for a broker that does allow trading on metatrader and supports mobile money, you can take a look at exness.
Hello sir, can I use mobile money with these brokers if I live in South Africa? I have the MTN account.
Hello Eno,
I think that at the moment, no fx broker accepts mobile money if you are based in South Africa. However, you can look at these South African FX brokers to see what deposit and withdrawal methods you can use to fund your account.
Please does exness work in mtn mobile money cameroon?
Hello Tazuh,
I believe they should, please verify this information directly with the broker tho.
Hey, are there forex brokers in Cameroon that accept mobile money.
Hello Fru,
Most brokers do not disclose in what countries they accept mobile money and in what not. So if I were you, I would try one of the brokers featured on this site that state they accept mobile money.
Hello sir,Am from Cameroon and I want to use a mobile money account
Please which broker accepts mobile money and works with MT5
Hello Cassian,
Exness for instance.
Does iq options use mobile money in Uganda?
Hello,
Please reach out with this question directly to IQ Option, as the countries where they support mobile money payments tends to update and change.
Ayt ,I’m in Ghana can I do deposit with airtel tigo money ?
Hello Yat,
I believe you can, but you have to verify this with a broker you want to trade with.
Is this applicable in Zambia
Hello Edward,
You have to verify this at the broker you want to trade.
Please can you do a research on why brokers don’t accept mobile money again
Hello Frimps,
Have you tried both brokers listed here? If yes, please respond and I will try to research what might be the issue.
I need help
Hey,
How can I help you?
I want to know if they do accept voda cash
Hey,
Vodacash is not yet that known and popular amongst brokers, they might accept it, but you have to verify this with your broker.
Upto now Exness hasn’t fixed its mobile money transactions method.. it went down like 2weeks ago …
Is it likely that they have stopped using as a transaction method
DO YOU ACCEPT MOBILE MONEY DEPOSITS FROM ZAMBIA FOREX TRADERS?
We are a blog providing information about the markets, all free of charge, so we don’t accept any payments.
Please I have a problem with Exness document verification by using a bank statement.
I have my residential address on my bank statement but they rejected it.
What should do now?
Hello Lanasas,
And for what reasons they did reject it? You can also use any other document that has your home address on it. That means utility bill, phone bill etc.