Payment providers must look beyond transactions, fintech executives say

Payment providers must look beyond transactions, fintech executives say.

Payment providers must help businesses manage cash flow, understand customers and reduce fraud as accepting digital payments becomes only the first step in adopting technology, fintech executives told Moonshot by TechCabal 2026.

Speaking at a panel titled “The Business Behind the Transaction”, executives from Mastercard, Remita and OPay said merchants needed services that connected payments to their wider operations, alongside reliable support and staff training.

“Let’s understand the customer, let’s solve for the customer problem rather than providing a generic product push across the different businesses,” said Shabir Ahmed, Mastercard’s Senior Vice President for Customer Solutions in Central Africa.

Ahmed identified connectivity, data-driven intelligence and trust as priorities for providers seeking to help businesses operate more effectively. His comments proved that the usefulness of payment technology depends on what businesses can do with it beyond collecting money. For Remita, that means extending services into financial management, invoicing and statutory compliance, said Abimbola Onyluka, the company’s divisional head for corporate and consumer business. Businesses need tools that connect their financial information to banks, lenders and regulators, she said.

MSEApp News is publishing an original rewrite of this tip for readers, based on reporting associated with TechCabal.