Kacha Signs Five-Year Mastercard Agreement to Expand Ethiopian Card Issuance

Key Takeaways

• Five years is the term of Kacha Digital Financial Service’s agreement with Mastercard.
• Kacha plans to issue payment cards directly to its own customers.
• Banks, microfinance institutions and fintech companies are eligible partners for its card-issuance services.
• Regulatory approvals and individual programme arrangements remain prerequisites for partner services.
• Kacha says engagement with interested financial institutions will begin immediately.
• Awash Bank introduced Mastercard-linked physical and virtual prepaid cards in February 2024.
• Commercial Bank of Ethiopia followed with Mastercard-enabled physical and virtual cards in March 2025.

Market Impact

• Kacha’s model combines direct customer service with issuance capabilities for other financial institutions.
• That expands the scope beyond individual bank programmes. The agreement does not establish that every proposed partner service is already available.

Key Numbers

• 5 years — agreement duration — partnership horizon.
• February 2024 — Awash rollout — earlier market entry.
• March 2025 — CBE rollout — subsequent participation.

Business Signal

• Partner onboarding and regulatory approvals will determine the reach of Kacha’s card platform.