Senegal Annual Monitor 2015

The ecosystem for digital financial services (DFS) in Senegal is transitioning from Start-Up to Expansion, a phase characterized by a predominance of first-generation DFS (money transfers, e-top-ups, bill payments) offered on a competitive basis by multiple providers. Three complementary models coexist: (i) over-the-counter (OTC) leads the market with money transfer operators (Joni Joni, W@ri); (ii) e-money is a distant second, mostly dominated by mobile money (Orange Money, Tigo Cash); and (iii) agent banking offered by one bank (Société Générale de Banques au Sénégal via subsidiary Manko) and by one microfinance institution (Microcred). While the market is dynamic and features a large and growing number of non-exclusive agents, it has limited interoperability and limited services. OTC transfers and bill payments through agents dominate the market.

BCEAO (Banque Centrale des Etats de l’Afrique de l’Ouest) issued new and better regulatory instructions for e-money issuers in May 2015 that address some of the gaps in the 2006 instructions. However, there are still opportunities for improvement, particularly in regards to know-your-customer (KYC), interoperability, agent banking, customer protection, market conduct, and supervision.