MoMo PSB, the fintech arm of MTN Nigeria, has entered a strategic partnership with the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria to provide digital and financial solutions that help SMEs operate more efficiently and scale sustainably.
Formalised in Lagos on Wednesday, the partnership will allow registered businesses to leverage MoMo PSB’s apps, point-of-sale (POS) systems, USSD channels and partner portals to manage payments, payroll, tills and multiple outlets from a single platform. The collaboration also gives SMEs access to MTN’s broader network and capacity-building programmes, offering the potential to streamline operations and expand market reach.
Executive Director of Strategy and Innovation at MoMo PSB, Usoro Usoro, said the partnership reflects the company’s commitment to supporting small businesses with practical tools. “Through the MoMo PSB Business App, we’re making it easier for entrepreneurs to manage payments, increase revenue and focus on growing their businesses profitably,” he said.
SMEDAN Director-General Says Partnership Removes Operational Friction
Charles Odii, Director-General and CEO of SMEDAN, said the collaboration is designed to remove operational friction and ensure financial support reaches SMEs in a simple, transparent and impactful manner.
By combining SMEDAN’s extensive SME network with MoMo PSB’s digital infrastructure, the partnership aims to drive meaningful growth across Nigeria’s fragmented SME ecosystem.
The emphasis on removing friction addresses a real problem. Nigerian SMEs often struggle with disconnected systems for payments, inventory, payroll and accounting. Managing these functions through multiple platforms creates inefficiency, increases error rates and wastes time that small business owners could spend on revenue-generating activities.
If MoMo PSB’s integrated platform actually delivers on the promise of managing all these functions from one interface, it could provide genuine value. However, the effectiveness depends on execution. Many digital business tools look impressive in presentations but prove clunky or incomplete when businesses try to use them for daily operations.
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MoMo PSB Digital Tools Available to All Nigerian SMEs
MoMo PSB emphasised that the digital tools provided through this partnership are accessible to SMEs across Nigeria, not just those registered under SMEDAN, signalling a broader effort to bridge the country’s financial inclusion gap and support entrepreneurial growth.
This clarification is important because it prevents the partnership from becoming just another exclusive programme that only helps businesses already connected to government agencies. By making tools available to all SMEs, MoMo PSB can reach the larger informal sector where most Nigerian small businesses actually operate.
The partnership follows a pattern of fintech companies collaborating with government agencies to gain credibility and market access. SMEDAN benefits by being able to point to tangible digital tools it’s making available to SMEs without having to build the technology itself. MoMo PSB benefits from SMEDAN’s network and the implicit government endorsement.
For Nigerian SMEs, the value proposition is straightforward: free or low-cost access to digital tools that can improve business operations. The question is adoption. Many small business owners remain sceptical of digital platforms, prefer cash transactions, or lack the smartphone access and digital literacy needed to use these tools effectively.
MoMo PSB’s advantage is its connection to MTN, which already has massive market penetration across Nigeria through mobile telephony. If they can convert even a fraction of MTN’s existing customer base into users of their business tools, they’ll achieve a scale that standalone fintech companies struggle to reach.
The partnership announcement is encouraging, but Nigerian business owners have seen many similar initiatives launched with fanfare that deliver limited practical impact. The real test will come over the next six to twelve months as SMEs actually try to use these tools and determine whether they solve real problems or just add another layer of digital complexity to already challenging business environments.
