Africa: American Express and Ecobank Group Expand Card Acceptance Across 21 Sub-Saharan African Countries

American Express and the Ecobank Group, a leading pan-African financial services entity, have announced a significant partnership to expand American Express Card acceptance in 21 countries across Sub-Saharan Africa.

This agreement will enable American Express Card Members to use their Cards in twelve additional countries: Burundi, Central African Republic, Gabon, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Malawi, Mali, Niger, São Tomé and Príncipe, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, and Togo. Furthermore, American Express Card acceptance will be increased in nine existing markets: Cape Verde, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Nigeria, the Republic of Congo, Rwanda, Tanzania, and Uganda. The rollout of acceptance in these countries will occur over the next 12 months. Ecobank will also provide ATM acceptance for American Express in all their operational countries in Africa, except Cape Verde.

Announced at the 2024 African Development Bank Group Annual Meetings, this partnership aims to enhance the American Express global network by increasing the number of locations where Card Members can use their Cards throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. This will not only provide Card Members with greater convenience but also enable merchants to attract a new customer base consisting of American Express consumer, business, and corporate Card Members both within Africa and globally.

Jeremy Awori, CEO of Ecobank Group, expressed his enthusiasm about the partnership: “We are delighted to welcome American Express to our network, reinforcing our commitment to offering innovative payment solutions for customers across Africa. This agreement will benefit American Express Card Members by providing them with greater choice and will help merchants grow their businesses. It also highlights the scalability of Ecobank’s unrivaled borderless banking ecosystem and network across Africa.”

Mohammed Badi, President of Global Network Services at American Express, emphasized the significance of the agreement: “This partnership with Ecobank marks a major milestone for American Express acceptance across Africa, expanding our presence in sub-Saharan Africa to 42 countries from the current 30. With Ecobank’s support, we look forward to providing merchants in these countries access to higher-spending American Express Card Members both in Africa and from around the world.”

This collaboration is in line with Ecobank’s Growth, Transformation, and Returns strategic agenda. The bank remains dedicated to offering its retail customers innovative and user-friendly financial solutions through its unified banking platform across Africa.