How do people in Mauritania pay online?
Most daily payments are in cash. The US Commercial Service describes Mauritania’s economy as largely informal, with most day-to-day transactions in cash and card use concentrated in the major cities. In the World Bank’s 2024 Global Findex survey, 27.3% of adults had an account and 10.9% owned a debit card. The World Bank, using ITU data, puts internet use at 45.8% of the population in 2024.
E-commerce runs through WhatsApp. The US Commercial Service reports that local vendors and shops show products on WhatsApp rather than on websites, and that buyers pay through mobile banking apps. Bankily and Masrivi, from Banque Mauritanienne du Commerce International (BMCI), are the main options, and Bankily is the more popular of the two.
Bankily is a bank account on a phone. Banque Populaire de Mauritanie (BPM) describes Bankily as a service that lets anyone open and manage a bank account from a mobile phone, through its app or through operators’ USSD codes on basic phones, and use it to transfer money, pay merchants, pay electricity, water and internet bills and top up phone credit. BPM says Bankily has close to one million clients and 700 distribution points where agents handle deposits and withdrawals.
Mobile banks now connect. Since October 2024, Bankily has worked with the other approved mobile banks through the national mobile switch run by GIMTEL, so customers of other mobile banks can pay Bankily merchants from their own app. Transfers through the GIMTEL service are capped at MRU 50,000 per transaction and per day.
Google Pay is listed for online and in-app payments in Mauritania, while Apple Pay is not on Apple’s list of supported countries.
What rules shape online payments in Mauritania?
VAT is 16%. PwC reports that local sales of goods and services are generally subject to VAT at 16%, with exports at 0%. Imports carry customs duties of 0% to 22% depending on the goods, plus a 1% statistical charge.
Foreign exchange is managed by the central bank. The US Commercial Service reports that the Central Bank of Mauritania has reduced direct foreign currency sales to the private sector since 2017, as part of a move to a more flexible exchange rate, and that there are no legal limits on transferring investment funds, subject to the availability of foreign currency.
Correspondent banking is limited. Since 2018, Mauritanian banks have had no correspondent relationships with banks in the United States, although intermediary banks still clear US dollar transactions for them, according to the same guide.
How would Omno route payments in Mauritania?
A merchant would connect once and set routing rules per method, currency and customer group. In Mauritania:
- Bankily and Masrivi could be offered through providers that support them, with the order pending until the provider confirms the payment.
- Card pay-ins would be routed by BIN, so local and international cards each go to the provider set for them, with cascading to the next provider in the rule if one is unavailable or rejects the request.
- Amount rules could send larger orders to methods with limits that fit them, since GIMTEL transfers are capped at MRU 50,000 per transaction and per day.
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 Bankily first. It is the most popular way to pay online sellers, and with interoperability other mobile bank users can pay Bankily merchants too.
Plan for chat-based selling. Many shoppers find products on WhatsApp, so payment links that work from a chat help close the sale.
Plan for few cards. About one adult in ten owned a debit card in 2024, so cards should sit next to mobile banking rather than replace it.