Apple Pay has officially launched in Mauritius, making it the third African country to offer the service, following South Africa and Morocco.

• Mauritius Commercial Bank (MCB) and Visa are the key partners enabling Apple Pay in the Indian Ocean nation.
• This launch positions Mauritius as a growing financial hub, while Kenya remains excluded due to its dominant mobile money ecosystem and lack of banking partnerships.
• iPhone users in Mauritius can now make contactless payments, a feature not yet available to Kenyan iPhone users.

Checker has successfully raised $8 million to scale its stablecoin infrastructure, aiming to enhance financial services for institutions across Africa and other emerging markets.

• The funding round was led by Al Mada Ventures, with participation from Galaxy Ventures and Framework Ventures.
• Checker addresses a key gap in stablecoin adoption by providing a novel orchestration layer for fragmented liquidity, as stated by Omar Laalej.
• The company connects financial institutions to global liquidity through a single API, enabling features like cross-border payments and credit solutions.

PayPal has announced the global expansion of its dollar-backed stablecoin, PayPal USD (PYUSD), to 70 markets worldwide. This move aims to provide faster and more seamless global transactions for consumers and businesses.

• PYUSD is now integrated directly into PayPal accounts across regions in Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East.
• Key figures include Senior Vice President and General Manager of Crypto at PayPal, May Zabaneh, and Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Middle East and Africa, Otto Williams.
• Users can buy, hold, send, and receive PYUSD, convert it to local currency, and earn rewards, while merchants benefit from faster access to funds, improving cash flow and cross-border operations.