How do people in Ethiopia pay online?
Mobile money has grown very fast. The National Bank of Ethiopia says mobile money accounts rose from under 1 million in 2020 to more than 128.5 million on 31 December 2024, mostly after non-bank providers entered the market. Digital transactions reached ETB 9.7 trillion in the 2023/24 fiscal year and exceeded the value of cash transactions.
telebirr is the largest wallet. Ethio Telecom reported 60.6 million registered telebirr customers for its 2025/26 fiscal year, with 2.61 billion transactions worth ETB 4.19 trillion, 440,100 merchants and more than 410,700 agents, according to TechAfrica News. M-PESA is the second network. Safaricom’s results for the year to March 2026, as reported by Ecofin Agency, show 5.2 million active M-PESA customers in Ethiopia, 442.2 million transactions and about 70,000 active merchants.
Banks and wallets are being linked. EthSwitch, the national switch, introduced a national payment gateway in November 2023. In December 2025 it launched Ethiopay, the brand for its instant payment system, which connects banks, microfinance institutions and wallets so that customers can pay by phone number, username or QR code. The National Bank introduced the national interoperable QR code in late 2024.
Cards are opening up. Domestic bank cards are used inside the country, and under National Bank Directive FXD/04/2026 banks can issue internationally recognised cards to foreign currency account holders with fewer documents. Dashen Bank, for example, launched a virtual Mastercard in its app for international online payments.
What rules shape online payments in Ethiopia?
VAT is 15% and reaches foreign digital sellers. VAT Proclamation 1341/2024 replaced the 2002 law. EY notes that a non-resident with no fixed place of business in Ethiopia that supplies remote services through an electronic distribution platform must register for VAT, subject to certain conditions, and that a platform can be treated as the supplier of goods that non-residents sell through it. PwC lists the standard rate at 15% and the registration threshold for residents at ETB 2 million of taxable supplies in 12 months. Imported goods pay customs duty of 10% to 35%.
Online sellers have disclosure and return duties. The Electronic Transaction Proclamation, as summarised in The Reporter in June 2026, requires suppliers to give their identity, address, total price, delivery time, return policy and payment methods before the contract, and to let customers review and correct orders. A consumer can return goods or services without cause within 7 days of receipt for a full refund, paying the return shipping, and can cancel within 14 days if the disclosures were missing. Suppliers must use a secure payment system that meets accepted technical standards.
Personal data has a new law. The Personal Data Protection Proclamation, No. 1321/2024, was adopted on 4 April 2024 and entered into force on 24 July 2024. It prohibits transfers to countries without adequate protection unless set conditions are met, and the Ethiopian Communications Authority keeps a register of data controllers and processors. Shega reported in November 2025 that key implementing directives were still pending.
How would Omno route payments in Ethiopia?
A merchant would connect once and set routing rules per method, currency and customer group. In Ethiopia:
- telebirr pay-ins would go to a provider that holds a telebirr merchant connection, with the order pending until the customer approves on their phone and the result arrives by webhook.
- M-PESA pay-ins would go to a provider connected to Safaricom Ethiopia, with the same pending state and confirmation.
- Card pay-ins can be routed by BIN, so domestic and international cards go to acquirers that accept them, with cascading to the next provider in the rule if one is unavailable or rejects the request.
- PSP eligibility rules can keep each customer group on providers that support its wallet.
Webhooks would report the final status of every payment, and the routing-decision log would show which provider handled each payment and why.
What should merchants plan for?
Plan for telebirr first, then M-PESA. telebirr has by far the most registered customers, and M-PESA is the second network.
Plan for asynchronous results. Wallet payments wait for the customer’s approval on their phone, so orders need a pending state and webhook confirmation before shipping.
Plan for VAT on digital sales. A foreign seller of remote services through a platform may need to register for the 15% VAT, so check the conditions in Proclamation 1341/2024.
Plan for returns and data rules. Allow 7 days for returns without cause, publish full disclosures before the order, and check transfer rules before moving customer data out of Ethiopia.