M‑Pesa Teams Up with Abu Dhabi‑Based ADI Foundation to Deploy Blockchain Infrastructure Across Eight African Markets

The collaboration is slated to enable stablecoin‑backed cross‑border payments from early 2026, adding a new digital layer to the mobile‑money service used by more than 60 million Africans.

The deal brings the ADI Chain, a regulatory‑compliant Layer 2 blockchain designed for emerging‑market financial institutions, to M‑Pesa’s existing payment rails. By linking the mobile‑money platform to a UAE Dirham‑pegged stablecoin issued by First Abu Dhabi Bank and International Holding Company, the partnership aims to give users a faster, cheaper way to move money across borders while shielding them from local currency volatility.

Sitoyo Lopokpiyit, chief executive of M‑Pesa Africa, highlighted the “transformative potential” of the venture, noting that the integration builds on the service’s track record of financial inclusion. Since its launch in 2007, M‑Pesa has grown into Africa’s largest mobile‑money platform, contributing roughly 42 % of Safaricom’s net profit and driving double‑digit growth year after year. The new blockchain layer is expected to extend that impact by giving individuals and small businesses a digital conduit for international trade, remittances and other services that previously required a bank account or a costly correspondent‑bank network.

The ADI Chain’s architecture is built around three pillars, regulatory compliance, operational efficiency and institutional‑grade security. By embedding the chain within M‑Pesa’s existing ecosystem, the two parties hope to sidestep the regulatory hurdles that have slowed broader blockchain adoption in the region. The planned Dirham‑backed stablecoin, overseen by the UAE Central Bank, provides a clear compliance framework that could serve as a model for other African fintechs seeking to integrate digital assets.

Beyond the technology, the partnership signals a deepening of ties between African fintechs and Gulf‑based financial innovators. The ADI Foundation, backed by sovereign‑wealth assets, has been positioning itself as a bridge for Middle‑East capital into Africa’s fast‑growing digital economy. By anchoring its first large‑scale rollout on M‑Pesa’s user base, the foundation gains immediate access to a market that already trusts mobile money for everyday transactions.

The rollout will be phased, with pilot testing expected to begin later this year in Kenya and Ghana before expanding to the remaining markets. Early adopters will be able to convert Kenyan shillings or Ghanaian cedis into the Dirham‑pegged stablecoin, transfer it across borders on the ADI Chain, and redeem it into the local currency of the destination country. According to Lopokpiyit, the process is designed to be as seamless as a traditional M‑Pesa transfer, with the blockchain operating behind the scenes.

While the partnership promises new capabilities, it arrives amid ongoing regulatory scrutiny of M‑Pesa’s corporate structure. Vodacom, which holds a 40 % stake in Safaricom, recently reiterated that it has no plans to spin off the fintech unit, despite calls from Kenya’s Central Bank and the National Treasury to separate the mobile‑money business from the telecom operation. Vodacom Group CEO Mohamed Joosub argued that the synergy between voice, data and financial services remains a core competitive advantage, a stance that may prove advantageous as the blockchain rollout deepens the platform’s value proposition.

Industry observers see the deal as part of a broader wave of blockchain experimentation across Africa’s payment landscape. From Kenya’s own Central Bank Digital Currency pilot to Nigeria’s thriving crypto exchanges, the continent is becoming a proving ground for digital‑currency infrastructure. By leveraging M‑Pesa’s extensive reach, the ADI Foundation could accelerate that trend, offering a template for how legacy payment providers can adopt distributed‑ledger technology without alienating regulators or users.

If successful, the integration could reshape how Africans think about money. A farmer in Tanzania, for example, might receive a payment from a buyer in Egypt in seconds, with the transaction settled on a blockchain that guarantees both speed and compliance. Small‑business owners could hedge against inflation by holding a stablecoin pegged to a hard currency, while still accessing the familiar M‑Pesa interface on their phones.

The partnership underscores the growing convergence of mobile money and blockchain, a fusion that could redefine financial inclusion on the continent. As the first stablecoin‑enabled cross‑border payments go live in 2026, all eyes will be on whether the technology delivers on its promise of cheaper, faster, and more resilient money movement for Africa’s unbanked and underbanked populations.