Opera, a global web innovator, has announced a milestone for its payments platform, Opera MiniPay, which has now surpassed a million users across Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana.
Launched in September 2022 in collaboration with partners Celo Foundation and Mento Labs, MiniPay is a dollar-pegged stablecoin wallet integrated into Opera’s Mini browser, which leverages blockchain infrastructure and Opera’s extensive mobile user base in Africa to improve digital finance across the continent.
The platform enables instant, low-fee transfers between users via digital dollar equivalents, leveraging phone numbers for simple onboarding and Google Key Backup for secure authentication. Additionally, MiniPay offers users the opportunity to earn money through cashback rewards and by facilitating payments.
Running on Celo, an open blockchain optimised for carbon-neutral mobile usage, MiniPay aligns with Opera and Celo’s shared goal of revolutionising global finance through “permissionless payments” accessible to anyone with a smartphone.
This initiative addresses a critical need in Africa, where a significant portion of the population lacks access to traditional banking services, and unstable national currencies undermine purchasing power and savings. Stablecoins like Celo’s cUSD, which tracks the U.S dollar, offer a reliable alternative in this context.
Recognising the opportunity to address financial inclusion challenges, Opera designed MiniPay with a focus on user experience, leveraging its existing user base of hundreds of millions across Africa. The platform’s intuitive design, coupled with seamless integration and partnerships with entities like Bitmama and Fonbnk for fiat currency conversion, has enabled widespread adoption.
Opera’s collaboration with Mento Labs’s token bridging infrastructure has enabled interoperability between Celo and other blockchains, further enhancing MiniPay’s utility and appeal.
MiniPay’s rapid growth, reaching seven-figure users within just five months despite limited marketing, is proof of the platform’s potential impact in addressing challenges around financial access. Opera’s executive vice president (EVP), Jørgen Arnesen attributes this success to MiniPay’s ability to merge the advantages of crypto with intuitive design, thus driving mainstream mobile adoption.
With recent funding rounds providing growth capital, Opera is well-positioned to further boost MiniPay engagement across Africa and beyond, with support from partners like Mento and Celo, who plan to provide infrastructure and co-marketing support as adoption continues to expand.
