By: Tewodros Balcha
Ethiopia's
national payment switch, EthSwitch, is exploring expanded cooperation with
Huawei on artificial intelligence, payment infrastructure and cross-border
payment connectivity with China, as the country seeks to strengthen the
technological backbone of one of Africa's fastest-growing digital payments
markets.
The discussions
took place during a visit by Fernando Liu, President of Huawei Digital
Finance's Central Bank & Non-Traditional Finance Business Unit, who met
EthSwitch Chief Executive Officer Yilebes Addis in Addis Ababa. According to
EthSwitch, the meeting focused on mobile banking innovation, resilient payment
infrastructure, AI applications to improve efficiency and security,
cross-border payment collaboration with China's payment and clearing ecosystem,
and technical capacity building for Ethiopia's financial technology sector.
The discussions
signal EthSwitch's growing engagement with global financial technology partners
as Ethiopia expands its interoperable payments ecosystem.
The timing is
significant. EthSwitch recently reported processing 387 million interoperable
transactions worth ETB 1.26 trillion during the 2025/26 fiscal year, while
posting ETB 2.6 billion in pre-tax profit. The figures underscore the rapid
expansion of Ethiopia's digital payments market and the increasingly strategic
role of the national switch in connecting banks and payment service providers
across the country.
Established to
deliver interoperable payment infrastructure, EthSwitch has become the backbone
of Ethiopia's electronic payments ecosystem, supporting ATM, point-of-sale, QR
code, instant payment and gateway services that enable seamless transactions
across financial institutions. As Ethiopia continues to liberalize and
modernize its financial sector, the institution is playing an increasingly
central role in supporting digital financial services and financial inclusion.
Huawei,
meanwhile, has steadily expanded its digital finance business globally,
positioning itself as a technology partner to banks, central banks and national
payment infrastructure operators. The company provides cloud computing,
artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and digital banking solutions to
financial institutions in more than 60 countries and says it serves thousands
of financial-sector customers worldwide.
Particularly
noteworthy was the discussion on cross-border payment cooperation with China's
payment and clearing ecosystem. Closer connectivity could eventually facilitate
faster and more efficient payment flows supporting trade, tourism and
commercial transactions between Ethiopia and China, Ethiopia's largest
bilateral trading partner.
The talks also
included discussions on strengthening local technical capacity through skills
development and knowledge transfer, reflecting Ethiopia's broader objective of
building domestic expertise alongside investment in digital financial
infrastructure.
The
significance of the meeting lies in its signal about Ethiopia's evolving
payments landscape. As transaction volumes grow and the country opens its
financial sector, EthSwitch is increasingly positioning itself as a key
national infrastructure institution seeking partnerships with global technology
providers to support the next phase of its digital finance development.
