Liberia’s Lonestar Cell, WorldRemit Team On Cross-Border Remittances

Liberia-based mobile financial services firm Lonestar Cell is partnering with WorldRemit to offer customers mobile remittances straight to their Lonestar Cell MTN Mobile Money (MoMo) accounts, according to a press release.

The service will be available free of charge, and the release stated it will make it possible for Liberians to receive instant remittances from “anywhere in Europe, Canada and the USA.”

There are currently over 7,000 Lonestar cashpoint locations available in Liberia. According to the release, this level of new access will make receiving money stress-free and easier for customers, with less of the long waits in line.

Lonestar Cell MTN Mobile Money acting CEO Christopher Ssali said the new updates would make life easier for “resilient” Liberians.

“Our MoMo ecosystem has grown so customers can use the money they receive to pay bills, buy goods, and pay for the services they need with Mobile Money,” he said in the release. “We are excited about this because it makes our customers lives easier, and we are supporting the government’s aim for a cashless digital economy and financial inclusion.”

Awa Gueye Ba, head of Francophone West & Central Africa at WorldRemit, said in the release that the MoMo service “will allow users to send remittances 24/7 from the WorldRemit website or mobile app and receive directly to their MTN Mobile Money accounts.”

“The partnership will further strengthen the efforts of the Central Bank of Liberia in focusing on diverse means of delivering financial services to the rural community sector of the population and integrating them into the formal economy,” she said, according to the release.

Signing up for the service is free. Customers must visit a Lonestar Cell MTN terminal or registered MoMo agent with a valid ID and fill out a form.

Remittances are one of many payment methods affected by the pandemic-induced digital shift. There was a downturn in physical remittances early this year, and PYMNTS reported that companies focusing on digital versions of remittance payments are seeing huge upswings in value.