(Business in Cameroon) – Camtel, Cameroon’s national telecom operator, is making a strategic entry into the country’s vibrant mobile money landscape with its new service, Blue Money. This launch places the state-owned company in direct competition with established giants Orange and MTN, vying for a share of a sector whose transaction value has skyrocketed from 887 billion FCFA in 2016 to an excess of 24 trillion FCFA in 2023.
The result of over two years of development and backed by a 500 million FCFA initial investment from its parent company, Blue Money is engineered to capture a specific market niche: rural and financially underserved populations. Its edge is built on affordability and accessibility, with ambition to offering users transaction fees under one percent, complimentary withdrawals at Camtel agencies, and functionality on both basic phones via USSD and smartphones through a dedicated app.
The challenge for Blue Money is significant, as it steps into a highly contested arena. It will face off against the formidable market leader, MTN Mobile Money, which boasted nearly 6 million active users and fintech revenues of 43.5 billion FCFA in the first half of 2025. At the same time, Orange continues to innovate and broaden its own financial services portfolio.
Adding to the pressure are disruptive newcomers like Wave Mobile Money, which have reset consumer expectations with aggressive pricing. Ultimately, Blue Money’s success will be determined by how effectively it can implement its rural-centric model against these entrenched and agile competitors.
Cynthia Ebot Takang
