Where Lazao opens, in which order, and with which payment method
Kenya and Madagascar first, soon. Then one more country every two to three months, in the order below. This page says where Lazao opens, with which payment method, and in which languages the interface comes.
The principle
We open a country when we can collect mobile money there without setting up a local company, and we open only one at a time. That criterion explains the list: a country where the mobile wallet is marginal does not become a market because it is large. One country at a time, because opening a country means integrating its mobile money operators, its currency and its languages, then having each language proofread by a native speaker. Two to three months is the time it takes to do that well; a few countries that share the same operators and the same languages open together.
Kenya and Madagascar open first: the former because mobile money is more deeply rooted there than anywhere in the world, the latter because the direct MVola integration and Malagasy as an interface language were ready from day one. Each following country opens two to three months after the previous one, and the order will be announced in the news with the operator chosen and the languages added. Everywhere else, the platforms stay reachable and payable by card, in dollars, from day one.
The first two countries, and the thirteen in development
At the opening, the Lazao+ price is a round, fixed amount in local currency that does not follow the exchange rate, and payment is made from your mobile wallet. The operator’s fee, the aggregator’s fee and the currency conversion are ours to bear. In the countries marked In development, as everywhere else, bank cards work from day one, in dollars: the price shown is the amount charged, except any conversion fee your bank may apply on its side.
| Country | Currency | Interface languages | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya | KES | Swahili, English | Opening soon |
| Madagascar | MGA | Malagasy, French | Opening soon |
| Democratic Republic of the Congo | CDF | French (answers also in Lingala and Swahili) | In development |
| Tanzania | TZS | Swahili, English | In development |
| Uganda | UGX | English, Swahili | In development |
| Senegal | XOF | French | In development |
| Côte d'Ivoire | XOF | French | In development |
| Cameroon | XAF | French, English | In development |
| Zambia | ZMW | English | In development |
| Benin | XOF | French | In development |
| Congo-Brazzaville | XAF | French (answers also in Lingala) | In development |
| Gabon | XAF | French | In development |
| Sierra Leone | SLE | English (answers also in Krio) | In development |
| Rwanda | RWF | English, French, Swahili | In development |
| Burkina Faso | XOF | French | In development |
The thirteen countries marked In development will open one at a time, every two to three months, in the order of this table, without dates. Benin, Congo-Brazzaville, Gabon and Sierra Leone will open together. Malagasy is a full interface language, on the same footing as the other three.