• Camtel to launch Blue Money in 2026, entering Cameroon’s crowded mobile money market led by MTN MoMo and Orange Money.

• Blue Money, capital CFA 500 M, faces tough rivals MTN, Orange & Wave; Camtel bets on its vast fibre network and rural reach.

• Despite fierce competition, Cameroon leads CEMAC in mobile money (76% of value); Blue Money aims to grab its share.

Camtel, the state-owned telecommunication company in Cameroon, is preparing to enter the local mobile money market in 2026 with its new service, Blue Money. The minister, Minette Libom Li Likeng, of Posts and Telecommunications, announced the initiative, listing it among the public operator’s key projects for the coming years. It marks a late arrival to a fast-growing market already dominated by MTN Mobile Money and Orange Money.

Legal documents show that Blue Money has an initial capital of CFA500 million. Its board chairman, Jean Marie Aimé Ottou, has already been appointed and is responsible for overseeing the rollout of this new mobile financial services provider. The launch comes in a highly competitive environment. For years, mobile money in Cameroon has been dominated by MTN Mobile Money and Orange Money, which together account for more than 80 % of electronic transactions.

The arrival of U.S. fintech Wave has recently disrupted this duopoly. Built on a model of free deposits and withdrawals and 1 % transfer fees, Wave has already reshaped the mobile money landscape in West Africa. In Cameroon, the platform operates with the support of Commercial Bank Cameroun (CBC), holds authorisation from the Central African Banking Commission (CObAC), and is gradually expanding its services nationwide.

Strengths and competitiveness challenges

In this shifting landscape, Camtel’s entry with Blue Money opens a new chapter in the battle for control of digital financial services in Cameroon. To compete with established players, Camtel brings a key asset: its extensive telecom infrastructure. The operator controls the national backbone, a major fibre-optic network, and has a long-standing presence in several rural areas where the potential for mobile-based financial inclusion remains significant.

For Blue Money, the challenge will be turning this technical advantage into a competitive edge for users. Pricing, ease of use, distribution network density, service reliability, and innovation (merchant payments, bill payments, transfers, etc.) will be decisive. In a market where habits are deeply entrenched, Camtel will need a clearly differentiated offer to convince users to switch to a new provider.

Despite intense competition, growth potential remains strong. According to a report by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC) on payment services in the Cemac zone, mobile money transactions in Cameroon increased 3.6 times between 2019 and 2023. In value, operations rose 2.5 times over the same period.

Mobile money transactions totalled CFA22 137 billion in 2023, up from CFA8 812.1 billion in 2019. The number of transactions surged from 615 million in 2019 to 2.2 billion in 2023. The milestone of 1 billion transactions was first crossed in 2021, followed by a sharp jump in 2023 with more than 600 million additional transactions in one year.

Cameroon is now the mobile money leader in the CEMAC region. According to the BEAC, the country accounts for 62.11 % of registered accounts, 63.58 % of transaction volume, and 76.57 % of the value of mobile money operations in the community area.

Against this backdrop, Camtel’s entry is significant. The historic operator aims to capture part of a market that has become one of the most dynamic segments of Cameroon’s financial sector. Whether Blue Money can secure a place among the established players while resisting pricing pressure and competing with innovation-driven fintechs remains to be seen.

The battle for digital financial services is more open than ever. Camtel’s ability to provide a competitive, reliable, and well-distributed service will determine Blue Money's position in Cameroon’s mobile money ecosystem.

Amina Malloum