Eli Hini, CEO of MTN’s MoMo Payment Service Bank (PSB), and Elsa Muzzolini, Chief Commercial Officer, have both exited the company. Muzzolini officially joined M-PESA Ethiopia, Safaricom’s mobile money arm, as CEO on July 15, following her resignation from MoMo PSB on July 12, which she communicated to employees in a note and updated on her LinkedIn profile. The details surrounding Hini’s departure in June 2024 remain unclear, including whether he has assumed a new role elsewhere.
Hini and Muzzolini, who both joined MoMo PSB in 2022, played pivotal roles in driving the fintech’s growth strategies in Nigeria. Their departures coincide with MTN Nigeria’s intensified focus on expanding its fintech operations, particularly as it seeks to grow its share of mobile wallets and increase adoption of the MoMo app amidst challenges in its core telecom business.
In the wake of their exits, Phrase Lubega, the company’s group executive for fintech commercial operations, has been named the acting CEO of MoMo PSB. His appointment is pending approval from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), according to a source with direct knowledge of the situation.
MTN Nigeria has not issued any public comments regarding the leadership changes.
MoMo PSB has seen significant growth under Hini and Muzzolini’s leadership, with mobile money wallets increasing by 55.8% to 5.5 million in the first half of 2024, up from 3.1 million in the same period in 2023. Fintech revenue also grew by 11%, driven by the rising adoption of the MoMo app and wallet services. This growth, however, is still modest compared to Airtel’s mobile money business, which saw a 14.9% increase in customers to 39.5 million and is slated to go public in 2025.
Further solidifying its commitment to the fintech sector, MTN Nigeria recently paid ₦6.95 billion to acquire Acxani Capital Limited, the minority shareholder of MoMo PSB. This acquisition, finalized on August 5, 2024, grants MTN Nigeria full control of MoMo PSB, enabling it to inject more capital into the fintech unit. As part of the deal, MoMo PSB received an additional ₦9.4 billion investment from MTN Nigeria, aimed at strengthening its operations and positioning it for future growth.
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