Digital Payments & Fintech · Cameroon
Fintech & digital payments rules in Cameroon (2026)
Cameroon shaded by its digital payments & fintech status
Cameroon operates within the CEMAC regional payment services framework, which since 2019 has permitted non-bank entities to obtain payment institution licences to issue e-money and provide digital payment services. A 2024 national ministerial decision extended licensing obligations to electronic payment service providers and API-based payment facilitators. By mid-2025, the Ministry of Finance enforced a hard August 2025 deadline requiring all active fintechs to hold a formal licence or cease operations.
Key points
CEMAC Regulation No. 04/18/CEMAC/UMAC/COBAC (December 2018) established the foundational regime for payment institutions across all six CEMAC member states including Cameroon. It introduced a non-banking model allowing non-credit institutions to issue e-money and provide payment services, replacing the prior bank-only model.
Payment institutions in Cameroon must obtain authorisation from the Ministry of Finance (MINFI), subject to COBAC approval and a positive opinion from BEAC. Applicants must be incorporated as a Public Limited Company (PLC) with a minimum share capital of 500 million CFA francs (approximately USD 820,000).
Decision No. 00000337/MINFI of 28 February 2024 broadened Cameroon's national definition of 'payment services' to explicitly include electronic payments and API communication platforms facilitating payment operations between two payment institutions, bringing a wider range of fintechs under formal licensing obligations.
In May 2025, the Ministry of Finance issued a communiqué giving all operating fintechs (mobile payments, digital lending, money transfer, crowdfunding) until August 2025 to obtain a formal licence. Post-deadline enforcement commenced, with non-compliant firms subject to suspension and market exit.
COBAC and BEAC enforce harmonised KYC/AML standards across CEMAC. Cameroon's National Financial Investigation Agency (ANIF), established under Decree 2019/695, serves as the country's Financial Intelligence Unit and coordinates national AML obligations for banks, payment providers, microfinance institutions, and fintechs.
CEMAC adopted a new unified anti-fraud payment messaging standard (CORENOFI) with a November 2025 compliance deadline for all member-state financial institutions. Separately, Cameroon imposes a 0.2% levy on electronic money transfers/withdrawals (since 2022) and added a fixed charge of 4 CFA francs per transaction under the 2025 Finance Law, raising concerns flagged by BEAC about the impact on digital payment adoption.
Cameroon - other topics
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