For years, millions of Africans have relied on mobile money to handle everyday transactions: paying bills, buying airtime, and sending money. But when it comes to shopping online or paying for international services, those same users hit a wall. Most e-commerce sites don’t accept mobile money. You need a card. And if you don’t have a bank account, you’re locked out.
That friction is about to disappear. Orange Money and Visa just closed a deal announced on December 12 that brings virtual Visa cards to 45 million Orange Money users across Africa and the Middle East. The setup is simple: open the Max it app, create a virtual card in seconds, fund it from your mobile wallet, and shop anywhere Visa is accepted. No bank account needed.
The partnership isn’t entirely new—it’s been running successfully in Botswana, Madagascar, and Jordan, where it’s now being renewed. Orange Money Côte d’Ivoire recently launched the virtual card to strong uptake, proving the model works. Now the rollout is expanding to Guinea, Burkina Faso, and the Democratic Republic of Congo, with more markets likely to follow.
Thierry Millet, CEO of Orange Money Group, says that with this partnership, users can now “create their virtual Visa card in just a few seconds and make international online payments across the Visa network.” Physical cards will also be available later through authorised Orange Money agents.
For context, Africa now accounts for 74% of all mobile money transactions globally, with over 1.1 billion active accounts processing $1.1 trillion in transactions during 2024 alone. That’s a massive ecosystem that’s been mostly cut off from global e-commerce. Partnerships like this bridge the gap.
Only 48% of Africa’s adult population is banked, according to the African Digital Banking Transformation Report. Mobile money bridged this gap by increasing from a penetration level of 22% in 2021 to 37% in 2024 in Sub-Saharan Africa. Now, with Visa’s global acceptance network plugged in, those users can finally participate in the digital economy without needing a traditional bank.
Ismahill Diaby, Visa’s Vice-President for Western and Central Francophone & Lusophone Africa, said it plainly: the partnership offers “a simple, secure way for more people and small businesses to pay online—helping them participate confidently in everyday commerce.”
However, Orange isn’t putting all its eggs in one basket. The company previously partnered with Mastercard in October 2024 to roll out similar virtual and physical debit cards across seven countries, including Cameroon, Mali, and Senegal. That deal aimed to empower millions of Orange Money wallet holders through Mastercard’s network. Now, with Visa added, Orange is covering more ground and giving users flexibility.
The timing matters. With over 500 million expected e-commerce users in Africa by 2025 and a penetration level of 40%, the demand is already in place; all that’s needed is the infrastructure to support this demand. Orange, present in 17 countries with 173 million customers and more than 100 million Orange Money users as of November 2025, is positioned to capture that growth.
Mobile money started as a workaround for weak banking infrastructure. It’s evolved into savings, credit, bill payments, and now global online commerce. What began as peer-to-peer transfers has become the backbone of Africa’s digital economy. And partnerships like Orange Money and Visa are accelerating that shift, turning mobile wallets into full financial tools that work anywhere in the world.
For Orange Money’s 45 million active customers, that means real access—to shop online, pay for international services, subscribe to global platforms, and participate fully in the digital economy, all from a phone, without ever stepping into a bank.
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