Ethiopia boasts millions of registered financial accounts, but the usage statistics tell a different story. Deep analysis shows that only 3%  of the population actively uses mobile money, and fewer than 20%  are familiar with ATMs or agents. This "digital literacy crisis" means that for millions of Ethiopians, the bank branch is a classroom, not just a transaction point. Customers flood branches not to deposit money, but to ask basic questions: "How do I use the app?" "What i

The future of finance in Africa is not just digital; it is profoundly mobile-first . For much of the continent, the path to financial inclusion has famously skipped the era of widespread physical bank branches and jumped straight to the mobile phone. This phenomenon, often termed 'leapfrogging,' is the single most defining characteristic of Africa's financial evolution. With high rates of mobile phone penetration—even in areas where traditional financial infrastructure is spa

The Ethiopian credit market is shifting. With innovative products like "DubeAle" (BNPL) gaining traction, the era of mass-market consumer credit is dawning. Unlike corporate loans, consumer credit is a high-volume game. Launching a new payroll-linked loan or a BNPL product can trigger a massive influx of customers needing onboarding, document verification, and support. If a bank launches a successful marketing campaign for a new loan product but hasn't prepared its lobby, the