E-Financial
Three Ways Embedded Finance can Drive a Cashless Economy
By Victor Irechukwu, Head of Engineering, OnePipe.
In recent years, non-bank providers have been integrating financial services into various products and services. This enables merchants that have these embedded financial services to interact with their customers in new ways.
Victor Irechukwu, Head of Engineering, OnePipe
Recall Nigeria’s recent cashless experiment? The main problem was not because the country wanted to go cashless, rather, people were unable to pay for goods and services. Yet, embedded finance could have solved this.
There were stories for instance in the poultry industry where thousands of farmers were said to have disposed of their eggs simply because they were dependent on cash. Maybe not individually but the value chain in which they operated was cash dependent. But what if one of the many big players had introduced embedded finance in that value chain?
The European Merchant Bank notes that embedded finance has the opportunity to truly change the financial sector forever, reaching a $138 billion value by 2026. Other estimates value this market in the trillions of dollars over the next decade, and Nigeria can also tap into these potentials in driving a cashless economy.
Here are three possibilities:
Embedded payments
Embedded payments refers to the integration of payments capabilities within an app or a platform that was not primarily designed to offer financial service. What it does is that when users need to make payments within that ecosystem, they need not go outside of it before money can be exchanged.
So, imagine in the midst of all the commotion from Nigeria’s cashless experience, if more organisations providing goods or services had embedded payments, there would have been less worry for Nigerians desperate to find cash. From such platforms, payments could have served a wide range of reasons, depending on what segment of the economy they were serving.
Examples abound in western markets from Starbucks, Uber, Amazon, Google and even WhatsApp which has a payments service.
Having some of such platforms locally, would have provided reputable intermediaries trusted by people expecting to get paid. For emphasis, while the fear of fake transfers remained an obstacle for some people, receiving payment via WhatsApp (for instance), which they already trust and use daily, would have been easier to adopt.
Embedded credit
This works both ways. On one hand, it can enable businesses to extend credit to their customers, allowing them to transact without the need for cash. On the other hand, it can be particularly useful for small businesses, which are already mostly starved of credit, to get access to lending that can keep them afloat when they do not have cash to operate.
What happens when you operate in an industry where vendors are bent on collecting cash before they supply you inputs? This happens a lot, beyond the urban, cosmopolitan areas of Nigeria, where cash still reigns.
In other instances, those coming to buy from you, after you have sourced inputs and produced a thousand eggs, usually only bring cash. However, since their retail side customers did not have access to cash during the cashless period, it means they also didn’t have money to buy from you. As simple as this may sound, it led to the collapse of many businesses.
A solution to both sides of this chaos could have been embedded credit. If enterprises had adopted one platform or the other, which allowed them to embed credit products into their business platforms, they could have been able to allow their consumers to apply for, acquire and repay loans within the platform. They could also have secured credit for their business, maybe in the form of inputs to keep their businesses afloat during the cashless period.
The best part is that they need not invest in custom made technology. These could in fact, be done at, say, cooperative or association levels, and not borne by individuals.
Embedded banking
Imagine paying your Uber driver after a trip, but doing so from your wallet in the Uber App. The driver gets this money but does not need to move it to their ‘regular bank account’. Why? Because the ride-hailing app has a feature for a savings account. This would mean whatever transactions they needed to do from a bank account could now take place from that same Uber app where they picked a customer, got paid and can in turn pay for anything they need.
The payments and credit feature earlier discussed, as well as everything else you can think of in a bank setting, can take place from this facility. This may sound foreign, but an ecosystem like this is possible in Nigeria. It in fact, depicts what could be a perfectly cashless environment. It could even go as far as issuing debit cards, which are linked to that account for them to pay for whatever they somehow can’t do from the app.
Embedded finance can deliver a win-win situation to both businesses that embrace them as well as their customers. The ease of access and low cost to entry is likely to make it viable across social demographics in a place like Nigeria.
United Bank for Africa (UBA) has announced strategic expansion into more African countries even as it plans to open a new office in Saudi Arabia, marking a significant milestone in its mission to connect Africa with key global markets.
Oliver Alawuba, GMD/CEO, UBA group,
This emerged during the Group’s Half Year Business Review held at its global headquarters in Lagos, where Oliver Alawuba, group managing director/CEO, UBA group, met with senior executives overseeing UBA’s 24-country footprint.
The meeting reaffirmed the bank’s pan-African strategy while outlining bold new steps into global markets.
Alawuba highlighted UBA’s continued growth outside Nigeria, with more than 51.7% of Group revenues now generated from its ex-Nigerian operations.
He described the Saudi expansion as a move that positions UBA to support cross-border trade, attract investment flows, and better serve the African diaspora.
“UBA’s vision is clear—we are building a truly global institution anchored in Africa, but serving customers across continents. Our entry into Saudi Arabia signals confidence in new opportunities and commitment to supporting economic connectivity between Africa and the Middle East,” he said.
The Saudi expansion adds to UBA’s international presence, which currently includes the United Kingdom, United States, France, and the United Arab Emirates. Alawuba also disclosed that the bank is upgrading its operating licence in France to further strengthen its European operations.
“In Europe, UBA has operations in the United Kingdom and is upgrading its licence in France, expanding its capacity to serve cross-border trade, investment flows, and the African diaspora, complementing our over 40-year presence in New York,” Alawuba noted.
Since launching its pan-African journey with an entry into Ghana in 2004, UBA has expanded rapidly across 20 African countries, establishing itself as a leading driver of financial inclusion, innovation, and regional integration.
Ecobank Transnational Incorporated announced its plan to raise up to $250m in Additional Tier 1 capital through a private placement of contingent convertible notes.
In a statement filed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited recently, the capital raise was approved by shareholders at the company’s Extraordinary General Meeting held in Lomé, Togo. The private placement offer was launched on July 9 and will run for ten days.
“Following the approval of the shareholders at its Extraordinary General Meeting held on May 28, 2025, in Lomé, Togo, to raise up to $250m in additional Tier 1 capital qualifying instruments via a private placement of contingent convertible notes, Ecobank Transnational Incorporated announces the launch of the AT1 effective July 9, 2025, for ten days. Renaissance Capital Africa has been appointed as the transaction adviser to ETI.”
The move is an initiative aimed at strengthening Ecobank’s capital adequacy, enhancing financial resilience, and supporting its long-term growth ambitions across its diversified pan-African banking platform.
Additionally, Madibinet Cisse, Ecobank’s Company Secretary, said, “This proposed capital raise represents a critical step in our efforts to fortify the bank’s financial foundation and support sustainable growth across Africa.”
It would be recalled that Ecobank Transnational Incorporated, the parent company of the Ecobank Group, has raised an additional $125m through a Eurobond tap, bringing the total size of its 2029 notes to $525m.
Ola Olukoyede, chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), has announced that the body has recovered lost funds from the CBEX fraud scheme.
Olukoyede did not announce the amount recovered, but he assured Nigerians that the EFCC is taking action against the promoters of the scheme.
The EFCC Chairman emphasised that the suspects found are facing prosecution.
“We have found a lot of people culpable. Those who promoted that scheme are within our jurisdiction and have been arrested. So, at this moment, they are being prosecuted. And we can also say that money has been recovered, even though the process is still ongoing for us to finally forfeit it,” he said.
Olukoyede also urged Nigerians to exercise caution when investing their resources into online platforms.
“Ponzi schemes remain one of the most pervasive threats facing unsuspecting investors. The CBEX case is a clear example. We all remember the outcry that followed the collapse of the scheme, but these unfortunate situations are preventable. Nigerians must begin to conduct due diligence before committing their resources to such platforms,” Olukoyede said.
He also stressed that the body remains committed to fishing out the culprits and recovering the lost funds.
“It was only when the bubble burst that people wanted EFCC to perform magic and recover their money. In the case we investigated in Lagos, which we dubbed Operation Flush, we arrested a large number of foreigners involved in various cybercrimes, including CBEX. I want Nigerians to know that as of today, we have secured close to 150 convictions. Some of them are already serving their jail terms. And when they are through with that, we are going to send them back to where they came from. So we are monitoring them,” he added.
He urged the public to stay vigilant, assuring them that the body will see the case to the end.
“We are no longer the EFCC that drops cases halfway. Whatever we start, we will finish. Nigerians should trust us and believe in our capacity to do justice. Some of these cases are complex and may require cross-border investigations, but we are up to the task,” he said.
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