iGaming Payment Solutions
Cellulant ReviewIs It the Right Payment Solution for Your iGaming Business?
Weak
Cellulant is a pan-African payments aggregator founded in Nairobi in 2003. Its Tingg platform connects merchants to 154+ payment methods across 35 African countries through one API, processing 4.5 million transactions per day. PCI DSS v4.0 certified, holds Central Bank PSP licenses in Kenya and Nigeria plus local permits across 18 countries. The product is built for African mobile money (M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo, Orange Money) and local cards, not for iGaming. African betting operators use it for mobile money rails because nothing else covers the continent this densely, but Cellulant has no SoftSwiss or EveryMatrix connectors, no published gambling license stack and no dedicated iGaming team. Useful as a regional specialist alongside a global PSP. Not a standalone iGaming solution.
Quick Info
iGaming Score
Our iGaming Score: 4.3/10
Weighted scoring across six criteria
| Criterion | Weight | Score | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| iGaming Fit No iGaming specialization. No SoftSwiss/EveryMatrix connectors, no dedicated gambling team, no published betting client list | 25% | 3.5 | Weak |
| Geographic Coverage 35 African countries through Tingg, 18 with physical offices. Zero coverage outside Africa | 20% | 2.5 | Insufficient |
| Security & Compliance PCI DSS v4.0 certified, CBK PSP and CBN PSSP licenses, 180-day rolling reserve in standard terms | 20% | 4.0 | Weak |
| Fees & Pricing 1.5-3.5% deposits depending on rail and country, custom contracts, FX markup 1-3% | 15% | 6.3 | Adequate |
| Tech & Integration Single REST API, SDKs in 5 languages, sandbox at developer.tingg.africa, 1-3 week integration | 10% | 6.5 | Adequate |
| User Trust No Trustpilot profile. Glassdoor 3.2/5 from 206 reviews flags recent execution problems | 10% | 5.0 | Adequate |
| Overall | 100% | 4.3 | Weak |
We score each provider on six criteria using a 1 to 10 scale. iGaming Fit carries the most weight at 25% because that is what matters most for gambling operators. Geographic Coverage gets 20%. Security and Compliance, Fees and Pricing, and Tech and Integration each get 15%. User Trust rounds it out at 10%. The final score is a weighted average of all six.
Score Explanation
iGaming Fit scores low because Cellulant doesn't market to gambling operators. Verticals listed are travel, telecoms, e-commerce, ride-hailing and retail. The platform handles mobile money payments well, which African betting operators need, but the company has none of the iGaming-specific infrastructure that AstroPay, Nuvei or Paysafe ship by default: no gambling licenses, no SoftSwiss connector, no responsible gaming hooks. Geographic Coverage rates strongly for Africa specifically and zero everywhere else. Inside Africa the breadth is real (35 countries) and the depth (mobile money + cards + bank transfers per market) is hard to match. Security & Compliance gets credit for PCI DSS v4.0 and dual central bank PSP licenses, but loses points on the 180-day rolling reserve hold and the absence of MGA, UKGC or FCA recognition. Fees come out custom and undisclosed, which usually means somewhere between AstroPay (1-2.5%) and Nuvei (1.5-3.5%) depending on rail. Tech is solid: clean REST API, multi-language SDKs, working sandbox. User Trust suffers from no Trustpilot data and a Glassdoor profile that documents two rounds of layoffs and a CEO turnover before the company reached profitability in March 2024.
Who Is Cellulant Best For?
Weighted scoring across six criteria
Recommended For
Operators expanding into Africa. Operators where Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania or South African players represent meaningful volume. Mobile money is the dominant deposit rail across most of these markets — 90% of Kenyan online betting deposits go through M-Pesa. Cellulant connects M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo and Orange Money under one contract, which is the single hardest piece of African payment infrastructure to assemble alone.
Mobile money collections at scale. Sportsbooks and casinos already running on Nuvei, Paysafe or Worldpay globally and looking for an African-specific add-on. Cellulant is not a replacement for those providers; it fills the mobile money gap they leave open. Pair it with a global PSP and you cover both card rails and the mobile money wallets African PSPs need.
Pan-African mass payouts. Operators that need mass payouts across multiple African markets in one batch. Tingg Payouts handles disbursement to mobile money wallets, bank accounts and cards across 18+ countries through a single API. Useful for affiliate payouts, agent commissions or player winnings in markets where SEPA and SWIFT don't reach efficiently.
Enterprise merchants with African player base. Enterprise-scale operators willing to negotiate custom contracts and absorb the standard 180-day rolling reserve. Cellulant is sales-led and built around enterprise references like Emirates, Jumia, Bolt and Mastercard. Small operators get less attention than mid-market or enterprise volume.
Not Recommended For
Operators with no African players. Operators with no African player base. Cellulant covers zero markets outside Africa. If your players are in Europe, LATAM, Asia or North America, this provider does nothing useful for you. Trustly handles 30+ European countries through open banking at 0-1%. AstroPay covers LATAM plus India. Nuvei reaches 50+ markets globally.
Crypto-focused platforms. Crypto-first casinos and sportsbooks. Cellulant supports no cryptocurrencies. NOWPayments handles 350+ coins at 0.5-1% with SoftSwiss integration. CoinsPaid does 20+ coins with fiat conversion for MGA-regulated operators. CoinGate covers 70+ coins with built-in invoicing.
SoftSwiss / EveryMatrix operators wanting plug-and-play. Operators on SoftSwiss, EveryMatrix or Slotegrant looking for plug-and-play integration. Cellulant has no pre-built connector for any major iGaming platform. Integration is custom REST API work, 1-3 weeks minimum. AstroPay has a Slotegrator connector. PayRetailers has connectors for both SoftSwiss and Slotegrator.
Small operators wanting transparent self-serve pricing. Small operators below $50k monthly volume who want transparent rates. Cellulant publishes no rate card; everything is negotiated. Onboarding is enterprise-skewed. NOWPayments quotes 0.5-1% publicly. Brite has an $200k minimum but transparent 0.99% pricing.
Operators needing MGA or UKGC-licensed PSPs. Operators that need an MGA, UKGC or Curaçao-licensed PSP for their own compliance reporting. Cellulant holds central bank PSP licenses in Kenya and Nigeria, not gambling-specific licenses. Worldpay holds UKGC, Nuvei has MGA and UKGC alignment, Paysafe is licensed across multiple gambling jurisdictions.
Geographic Coverage
Supported regions and market focus
Regions
Coverage Analysis
35 African countries reached through 154+ payment options. Office presence in 18 markets including Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zambia, Botswana, South Africa, Egypt, Côte d'Ivoire and Senegal. Strongest in East Africa where mobile money penetration is deepest. West Africa covered through Nigeria (post-mobile money license surrender, now PSSP-only), Ghana, Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire. Southern Africa runs through South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe. North Africa covered in Egypt and Morocco at lighter depth. No coverage in Europe, North America, LATAM, Asia or Australia. For non-African markets you need a different provider.
Regional Breakdown
Kenya is the flagship market. M-Pesa moves an estimated 90% of online gambling deposits in the country, and Cellulant integrated with M-Pesa back in 2007 when the service first launched. Tingg supports M-Pesa, Airtel Money Kenya, KCB, Equity and Co-op Bank rails. BCLB-licensed operators typically use Cellulant or DPO Group as their aggregator into Safaricom paybills. Nigeria runs through PSSP licensing for collections and disbursements; consumer mobile money is no longer offered after Cellulant voluntarily surrendered that license in December 2023 to focus on B2B payments. Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda lean heavily on MTN Mobile Money and Airtel Money. South Africa is card-dominant with instant EFT (PayShap, Ozow-style methods) layered on. Outside Africa, the gap is total — Trustly handles 30+ European countries, AstroPay covers LATAM and India, Nuvei delivers 50+ markets globally. Most operators using Cellulant pair it with at least one non-African PSP.
Key Features for iGaming Operators
Products, payment methods, and verticals
Key Products
Tingg Checkout, Tingg Payouts, Tingg Collections, Open Banking API
Three core products under the Tingg brand. Tingg Checkout handles collections via hosted page or host-to-host API across mobile money, cards, bank transfers, USSD and QR. Tingg Payouts disburses funds to mobile wallets, bank accounts and cards across 18+ markets, useful for affiliate payouts, mass disbursements and remittance flows. Tingg Open Banking exposes account information and payment initiation in markets where local frameworks permit it. All three sit on one merchant contract and one API. Older product lines like Mula consumer wallet and Agrikore (blockchain agritech) were either rebranded into Tingg or wound down as the company refocused on B2B payments in 2021-2023.
Payment Methods
154+ payment methods spanning mobile money wallets, local debit and credit cards, bank transfers, USSD and QR. Mobile money is the headline rail: M-Pesa (Safaricom Kenya, Vodacom Tanzania), Airtel Money (across 14 markets), MTN Mobile Money (13 countries via Mastercard partnership), Orange Money (West Africa) and Tigo Pesa. Cards run on Visa, Mastercard and local schemes including Verve in Nigeria. Bank transfer rails connect to 210+ banks via Tingg's bank API layer. USSD handles non-smartphone deposits — important for the 60%+ of African mobile users still on feature phones. Cellulant's company materials cite 154 in one place and 200-300+ in newer collateral; the disparity reflects how the company counts MNO variants and bank rails. Compare AstroPay (50+ methods, LATAM-skewed) or PayRetailers (300+ methods, LATAM + Africa). Nuvei claims 700+ globally with a smaller African footprint.
Verticals
Listed verticals are travel, telecoms, e-commerce, ride-hailing, retail and remittances. iGaming is not on the official vertical list. Public client references include Emirates (split-payment for Kenyan travellers, Feb 2026), Jumia, Bolt, Glovo, MTN, Airtel and the Mastercard/Visa/Citi partnerships. No betting operator is named in public materials. African betting brands like SportPesa, Betway Africa and Betika use mobile money aggregators including Cellulant, DPO Group and direct Safaricom paybills, but Cellulant doesn't publish those relationships and has no iGaming case studies on its site.
| Feature | Status | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Deposit Processing | 154 documented payment options; some company materials cite 200+ and 300+ in newer collateral. 4.5M transactions/day across 35 markets. payment methods, Instant | |
| Withdrawal / Payout | 24-48h | |
| Instant Withdrawals | 24-48h | |
| KYC / AML Built-in | Full auto | |
| Chargeback Protection | Merchant | |
| Multi-Currency | African local currencies (KES, NGN, GHS, UGX, TZS, ZAR, ZMW, XOF, XAF, RWF and more), USD, EUR, GBP | |
| API Integration | Single REST API + SDKs | |
| Local Payment Methods | 154 documented payment options; some company materials cite 200+ and 300+ in newer collateral. 4.5M transactions/day across 35 markets. methods across multiple categories | |
| iGaming Specialization | M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo, local cards, 35-country reach, single API | |
| Geographic Coverage | 35 countries across Africa |
Pricing & Fee Structure
Fee structure and pricing model
Pricing & Fee Structure
% per transaction pricing model
1.5-3.5%
Custom
T+1 - T+3
154 documented payment options; some company materials cite 200+ and 300+ in newer collateral. 4.5M transactions/day across 35 markets.
Up to 180 business days (terms)
1-3%
Custom
N/A
No
Pricing Details
Cellulant publishes no rate card. Pricing is fully negotiated and varies by country, payment rail and merchant category. Mobile money typically lands in the 1.5-3% range per transaction — M-Pesa, Airtel Money and MTN MoMo each carry MNO interchange fees that constrain the floor. Card rails (Visa, Mastercard, Verve) cost more, usually 2.5-3.5% all-in, because international card interchange is higher and African card acquiring carries a high-risk premium. Bank transfers via the 210+ bank network are mid-range. FX markup runs 1-3% on conversions out of African local currencies into USD or EUR, which is the rate most operators will care about since they typically settle in major currency. Rolling reserve per the published terms holds up to 180 business days for chargeback exposure, subject to merchant risk profile. Setup is custom, no published number. An operator running $300k/month in mobile money deposits across Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania should budget $6,000-$9,000 in transaction fees, plus FX losses on settlement and the rolling reserve cash flow impact. Rates current as of May 2026, subject to renegotiation as Cellulant scales under the new CFO.
Negotiation Tips
Push hard on per-rail breakdown. Mobile money costs Cellulant less than card processing, so the headline blended rate hides cheaper unit economics on the rails you'll actually use most. Get separate rates for M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo, card rails and bank transfers. Volume tiers at $250k, $500k and $1M monthly should unlock meaningful discounts — Cellulant is sales-led and reaching for enterprise, so volume commitments translate. Negotiate the rolling reserve hard. 180 days is the standard contract ceiling; clean merchants with good chargeback history should land at 60-90 days or lower percentage. On FX, ask whether you can settle in local currency to your treasury and convert externally — Cellulant's 1-3% markup compounds fast on six-figure monthly volume. Verify in writing whether your iGaming vertical triggers additional risk-based reserve adjustments (the 21-day notice clause for reserve increases applies post-signing, so price that risk in upfront).
Speed & Settlement
Transaction processing and settlement timelines
Instant
Player-initiated24-48h
Operator payoutT+1 - T+3
To operator accountAfrican local currencies (KES, NGN, GHS, UGX, TZS, ZAR, ZMW, XOF, XAF, RWF), USD, EUR, GBP
Settlement optionsDeposits are instant on mobile money rails — M-Pesa, Airtel Money and MTN MoMo confirm within seconds. Card deposits clear instantly on approval. Player withdrawals to mobile money usually complete within 24-48 hours; bank transfer withdrawals can take longer in markets with slow ACH. Operator settlement runs T+1 to T+3 in standard contracts, which is competitive with AstroPay (T+1 to T+2) and PayRetailers (T+1 to T+3) but slower than Brite (T+0) for European open banking. Refund processing takes 3-7 business days, on the slower side compared to AstroPay (1-3 days) but normal for African card rails where issuers handle refunds in batches. The 180-day rolling reserve hold is separate from settlement timing and applies to the held percentage only, not the settled balance.
Integration & Tech
Developer experience and technical capabilities
API Type
Single REST API + SDKs
Onboarding
2-4 weeks
Sandbox
Full sandbox at developer.tingg.africa with payment simulation across MPESA, Airtel, MTN and cards. Test/live key separation in dashboard.
Mobile SDK
Express Checkout SDKs in PHP, Node.js, Python, C# and Go on GitHub (CellulantCorp). No first-party native iOS/Android SDK; mobile integration goes through hosted checkout or WebView.
White-Label
Tingg Express Checkout (hosted page) and Tingg Custom Checkout (host-to-host API) allow merchants to control deposit UX. WooCommerce plugin available.
Docs Quality
Good
1-3 weeks
Integration Assessment
Single REST API. Tingg Checkout v2.8 and v3.0 are both supported in parallel — v3.0 documentation lives at docs.tingg.africa and v2.8 at cellulant.gitbook.io/checkout. Two integration modes: Express Checkout (hosted payment page with redirect) and Custom Checkout (host-to-host API for full UX control). Server-side SDKs maintained on GitHub (CellulantCorp): PHP, Node.js, Python, C# and Go. WooCommerce plugin available for e-commerce sites. Webhooks deliver payment status updates; the Acknowledge API handles missed webhooks. Encryption uses Access Key, IV Key and Secret Key parameters — common HMAC pattern, well documented but a stumbling block for teams expecting Stripe-style API key simplicity. No pre-built SoftSwiss, EveryMatrix or Slotegrator connector. Sandbox at developer.tingg.africa lets you simulate MPESA, Airtel and MTN payments before going live. Standard integration timeline is 1-3 weeks, longer for iGaming operators since high-risk onboarding adds compliance review.
Risk & Compliance
Licensing, fraud prevention, and regulatory compliance
Compliance Context
PCI DSS v4.0 certified through Panacea InfoSec, applicable to card data tokenization and storage. Central Bank of Kenya Payment Service Provider authorization grants regulated status across Kenyan rails. Central Bank of Nigeria Payment Solution Service Provider license renewed February 2023, covering collections, checkout, biller aggregation and payouts. Local payments regulation managed per-country across the 18 office markets. Real-time fraud monitoring on the platform, 3DS supported on card rails, MNO-side controls (PIN, USSD confirmation) on mobile money. No published ML-based fraud product brand. No MGA, UKGC, FCA or ECB regulation — important if your own license requires a regulated PSP from one of those jurisdictions. Chargeback liability sits with the merchant. Standard contract terms include a rolling reserve that releases after 180 business days, subject to outstanding chargebacks, refunds or penalties; the percentage can be increased unilaterally with 21 days written notice.
About Cellulant: Company Background
Company and product information
Company History
Cellulant was founded in 2003 by Ken Njoroge and Bolaji Akinboro, originally selling mobile content (ringtones, music news) through carrier networks in Uganda, Ghana and Nigeria. The pivot to payments came after 2007, when M-Pesa launched in Kenya and Cellulant built one of the first bank-to-mobile-money bots, linking bank accounts to Safaricom's wallet. That early M-Pesa integration shaped the company's DNA: mobile money first, banks second, cards third.
Growth accelerated through the 2010s as Cellulant added more African markets and signed enterprise telecom and bank partnerships. In 2018 the company closed a $47.5M Series C — the largest African fintech round at the time — from TPG's Rise Fund, Endeavor Catalyst, Satya Capital and others. By 2019 the consumer Mula brand was relaunched as Tingg, marketed as Africa's first payments super app spanning eight markets. The Lagos mobile money license was secured, and Cellulant positioned itself as the pan-African answer to fragmented payments.
2022-2024 was rough. A planned $100M Series D was shelved. Cellulant laid off ~20% of staff in August 2023. CEO Akshay Grover stepped down in December 2023, triggering another round of layoffs. The Nigerian mobile money license was voluntarily surrendered in December 2023 (gazetted by CBN), explicitly to refocus on B2B payments rather than consumer wallets. The company reached profitability in March 2024 under acting then permanent leadership. A new executive bench arrived through 2026: Peter O'Toole as CEO, Anthony Hernandez (ex-Xapo Bank) as COO with an explicit mandate to fix execution and reduce payment failures, Michael Muriuki as Chief Product & Technology Officer and Darren Makarem (ex-Agoda) as CFO. The Emirates split-payment partnership launched in February 2026 is the most visible product win of the new era.
What Users Say: Trustpilot & Review Analysis
Our analysis of 0 reviews from Trustpilot and industry sources
Trustpilot Presence
Cellulant does not maintain an active Trustpilot profile. As a B2B payments aggregator, consumer-facing review volume is structurally low — players interact with operator and MNO brands, not Cellulant directly. Evaluate trust through licensing (PCI DSS v4.0, CBK PSP, CBN PSSP), enterprise references (Emirates, Mastercard, Citi, Adyen) and employee signals on Glassdoor (3.2/5).
Notable Clients
Emirates, Mastercard, Visa, Citi, Adyen, Jumia, Bolt, Glovo, MTN, Airtel
Public references are heavy on enterprise: Emirates, Mastercard (virtual card linked to Tingg gateway), Visa, Citi (Citi Optimized Pay supply chain finance for Kenyan SMEs), Adyen (Africa expansion partnership covering Nigeria, Kenya, Tanzania, Ghana, Uganda), Jumia, Bolt, Glovo, MTN and Airtel. No iGaming brand is published as a client. African betting operators (SportPesa, Betway Africa, Betika, BetKing, 1XBet Africa) use mobile money aggregators including Cellulant, DPO Group and Onafriq, often as one of several rails. Cellulant doesn't volunteer those names, which is normal for high-risk verticals.
Operational Details
Business terms, contracts, and support
Achieved profitability March 2024 after a tough 2022-2023 (shelved $100M Series D, two rounds of layoffs, CEO turnover). New leadership 2026: Peter O'Toole (CEO), Anthony Hernandez (COO ex-Xapo), Michael Muriuki (CPTO), Darren Makarem (CFO ex-Agoda). Hernandez's mandate is fixing execution and reducing payment failures, which itself signals reliability has been an issue. Strong partnerships: Mastercard, Visa, Citi, Adyen (Africa expansion), Emirates (split payments). Used by African betting operators for mobile money rails but no published iGaming case studies.
Frequently Asked Questions
10 questions about Cellulant
Cellulant is PCI DSS v4.0 certified and holds Payment Service Provider licenses from the Central Bank of Kenya and Central Bank of Nigeria, plus local approvals across 18 African countries. It does not hold gambling-specific licenses (no MGA, UKGC, Curaçao recognition) and has no public iGaming case studies. Operationally it's safe for collections and payouts on African rails. For your own license compliance, check whether your regulator requires a gambling-licensed PSP — if yes, pair Cellulant with one (Nuvei, Paysafe, Worldpay) and use Cellulant only for African mobile money.
No public rate card. Mobile money rails (M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo) typically price 1.5-3%. Cards (Visa, Mastercard, Verve) usually 2.5-3.5% all-in. Bank transfers mid-range. FX markup 1-3% on conversions out of African currencies. Rolling reserve up to 180 business days per standard terms. Setup custom. An operator processing $300k/month in African mobile money should budget $6,000-$9,000 monthly in transaction fees plus FX losses. Rates as of May 2026, all negotiated per contract.
Yes. Cellulant integrated with M-Pesa in 2007, the year Safaricom launched the service. M-Pesa Kenya and M-Pesa Tanzania are both supported, plus Airtel Money Kenya, KCB, Equity Bank and Co-op Bank rails. For Kenyan iGaming this matters because roughly 90% of online betting deposits in Kenya go through M-Pesa. Operators with a BCLB license can route through Cellulant as an aggregator instead of negotiating directly with Safaricom paybills.
No pre-built connector exists for SoftSwiss, EveryMatrix, Slotegrator or BetConstruct. Integration requires custom REST API work against Tingg Checkout v2.8 or v3.0, 1-3 weeks standard. PayRetailers has pre-built connectors for both SoftSwiss and Slotegrator if plug-and-play matters. AstroPay has a Slotegrator connector. Nuvei lists 6 iGaming platform connectors.
35 African countries through 154+ payment options. Office presence in 18: Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Zambia, Botswana, South Africa, Egypt, Morocco, Côte d'Ivoire, Senegal, Cameroon, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Malawi and DRC. East Africa is deepest. West Africa runs through Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire. North Africa lighter. No coverage outside Africa. For Europe add Trustly. For LATAM use AstroPay or PayRetailers. For global cards Nuvei or Worldpay.
1-3 weeks for standard integration against the Tingg REST API, using SDKs in PHP, Node.js, Python, C# or Go. WooCommerce plugin available. Sandbox at developer.tingg.africa supports payment simulation. iGaming onboarding adds compliance review and typically pushes to 2-4 weeks. No pre-built iGaming platform connectors, so SoftSwiss or EveryMatrix operators should plan for custom adapter work on their end.
DPO Group (now Network International) is the closest like-for-like competitor for African aggregation. DPO covers 25-30 countries with similar mobile money breadth and was acquired by Network International in 2021, giving it card acquiring scale Cellulant lacks. Cellulant counters with 35-country reach, deeper mobile money history (the 2007 M-Pesa integration) and the recent Adyen partnership extending its reach. Both lack gambling-specific licenses. Pricing is custom on both sides; operators should RFP both. Onafriq (ex-MFS Africa) is a third option focused more on mobile money interoperability than full PSP services.
No. Cellulant has experimented with blockchain technology in side projects (Agrikore agritech) but Tingg does not accept Bitcoin, Ethereum, stablecoins or any cryptocurrency. For African operators wanting both mobile money and crypto, pair Cellulant with NOWPayments (350+ coins, 0.5-1%) or CoinsPaid (20+ coins with fiat conversion).
Standard contract terms allow Cellulant to withhold a rolling reserve that releases after 180 business days, subject to outstanding chargebacks, refunds, fines or penalties. The percentage is negotiated per merchant risk profile and can be increased unilaterally by Cellulant with 21 days written notice. Compare PayRetailers at 6-10% for 4 months, AstroPay at 5-8% for 3 months. Cellulant's 180-day timeline is on the long end; negotiate down for clean merchants with low chargeback history.
Yes, and most operators with African exposure do. Cellulant covers African mobile money and local rails. Pair it with Nuvei or Worldpay for global card processing, Trustly for European open banking, AstroPay or PayRetailers for LATAM and NOWPayments or CoinsPaid for crypto. A typical multi-region operator stack with African focus might run Cellulant (Africa) + Nuvei (global cards) + Trustly (Europe) + NOWPayments (crypto).
Our Verdict: Should You Use Cellulant?
Final assessment for iGaming operators
Overall iGaming Score
Summary
Pan-African payments aggregator with the deepest mobile money coverage on the continent — M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo, Orange Money — connected through one REST API across 35 countries. PCI DSS v4.0 certified, dual central bank PSP licenses, working SDKs in five languages. Not built for iGaming: no gambling licenses, no SoftSwiss connector, no published betting clients, no crypto. Useful as a regional specialist alongside a global PSP, not as a primary iGaming payments provider. Recent execution history (2023 layoffs, 2024 CEO turnover) tempered by March 2024 profitability and a fresh executive bench in 2026.
Strongest Point
Mobile money depth across Africa. 154+ payment methods spanning M-Pesa, Airtel Money, MTN MoMo, Orange Money plus local cards and bank transfers, all connected at the country level. The 2007 M-Pesa integration gave Cellulant a head start on Kenyan rails that DPO Group, Onafriq and the global PSPs are still catching up to. For an operator launching in Kenya where 90% of betting deposits flow through M-Pesa, Cellulant solves the single hardest piece of the payment stack. Tingg Payouts adds mass disbursement to mobile wallets across 18+ markets through the same API — useful for affiliate payments and player winnings in markets where SWIFT and SEPA don't reach efficiently.
Key Limitation
Africa-only coverage with no iGaming productization. Zero markets outside Africa, no gambling licenses, no pre-built iGaming platform connectors, no responsible gaming integrations, no published betting customers. An operator that picks Cellulant as primary PSP must still solve cards, Europe, LATAM, Asia and (if relevant) crypto separately. The 180-day rolling reserve in standard terms is long. Glassdoor reviews and the new COO's explicit reliability mandate suggest payment failure rates have been a documented problem; verify SLA terms in writing. No transparent pricing means every contract is a separate negotiation, which favors enterprise buyers with leverage and disadvantages smaller operators.
Recommendation
Add Cellulant if African players represent material volume and mobile money is the dominant deposit rail in your target markets. Strongest fit for operators with $250k+ monthly African volume already running a global PSP for cards. Pair with Nuvei, Paysafe or Worldpay for non-African coverage. For SoftSwiss or EveryMatrix operators wanting plug-and-play, look at PayRetailers (LATAM + 12 African markets with SoftSwiss connector) or AstroPay (50+ methods, LATAM-skewed) first. For pure African card acquiring without mobile money depth, DPO Group / Network International is a closer like-for-like alternative. Negotiate the 180-day rolling reserve down before signing. Updated May 2026.
Pros
- Deepest mobile money coverage on the continent — M-Pesa Kenya, M-Pesa Tanzania, Airtel Money across 14 markets, MTN MoMo across 13, Orange Money in West Africa, Tigo Pesa — all connected under one API and one contract. The 2007 M-Pesa integration history gives Cellulant the longest operating record on what is now the dominant African deposit rail.
- 35 African countries through 154+ payment methods. Office presence in 18 markets means real local compliance support, not just an API endpoint. East Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda) is the strongest region. West Africa runs through Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Côte d'Ivoire. Southern Africa via South Africa, Zambia, Botswana, Zimbabwe.
- Tingg Payouts handles mass disbursements to mobile wallets, bank accounts and cards across 18+ African markets through the same API. Useful for affiliate payouts, agent commissions and player winnings where SWIFT and SEPA don't reach. Real-time and batch modes both supported.
- Clean technical setup: REST API with HMAC encryption, server-side SDKs in PHP, Node.js, Python, C# and Go on the CellulantCorp GitHub org. WooCommerce plugin available. Sandbox at developer.tingg.africa supports MPESA, Airtel and MTN payment simulation before going live. Two integration modes — hosted Express Checkout and host-to-host Custom Checkout — cover most operator UX preferences.
- Regulated stack: PCI DSS v4.0 certified through Panacea InfoSec, CBK Payment Service Provider authorization, CBN Payment Solution Service Provider license renewed February 2023, plus local approvals across 18 office markets. Enterprise client references like Emirates, Mastercard, Visa, Citi (Citi Optimized Pay) and Adyen Africa expansion give the platform institutional credibility.
- Settlement T+1 to T+3 with multi-currency support across African local currencies plus USD, EUR and GBP. Real-time fraud monitoring and 3DS on card rails. Mobile money rails benefit from MNO-side fraud controls (PIN, USSD confirmation) which reduce card-not-present fraud exposure compared to international card processing.
Cons
- No iGaming specialization. Verticals listed are travel, telecoms, e-commerce, ride-hailing, retail and remittances. No gambling licenses (no MGA, UKGC, Curaçao recognition). No published iGaming client list. No pre-built SoftSwiss, EveryMatrix or Slotegrator connector. No responsible gaming hooks. African betting operators use Cellulant for mobile money but the platform doesn't market to them or productize for them.
- Africa-only geography. 35 markets within the continent, zero outside it. An operator with European, LATAM, Asian or North American players gets nothing useful. AstroPay covers LATAM plus India. Trustly handles 30+ European countries. Nuvei runs 50+ markets globally. Cellulant is by definition a regional specialist, not a one-stop-shop.
- No crypto support at all. Cellulant has experimented with blockchain in side projects (Agrikore) but Tingg accepts zero cryptocurrencies. NOWPayments does 350+ coins, CoinsPaid 20+ with fiat conversion, CoinGate 70+. African operators wanting both mobile money and crypto need a second integration.
- Rolling reserve up to 180 business days in standard terms — longer than PayRetailers (4 months) and AstroPay (3 months). The reserve percentage can be increased unilaterally by Cellulant with 21 days written notice post-signing, which creates ongoing cash flow uncertainty. Chargeback recovery extends past contract termination.
- Execution history is patchy. Workforce cut ~20% in August 2023, CEO Akshay Grover departed in December 2023 triggering another round of layoffs, $100M Series D shelved in 2022, Nigerian mobile money license voluntarily surrendered in December 2023. Profitability reached March 2024. The April 2026 COO hire (Anthony Hernandez) carries an explicit public mandate to reduce payment failures and improve reliability — a signal that customers have flagged these as problems.
- Opaque pricing with no public rate card. Every contract negotiated. Mobile money typically 1.5-3%, cards 2.5-3.5%, FX markup 1-3%, setup custom. Disadvantages small operators without volume leverage. No published minimum monthly volume but the sales process is enterprise-skewed. Glassdoor 3.2/5 from 206 reviews; no Trustpilot profile to triangulate against.
Ready to evaluate Cellulant for your business?
Cellulant vs. Alternatives: How It Compares
Similar payment processing solutions
For African coverage specifically, DPO Group (now Network International) is the closest like-for-like alternative with comparable mobile money breadth and card acquiring scale via the parent. Onafriq (ex-MFS Africa) connects ~1 billion mobile money wallets across 40+ markets but functions more as an interoperability network than a full PSP. Flutterwave and Paystack are Nigerian-born and developer-friendly but lighter on East African mobile money depth. For non-African coverage, Nuvei handles 50+ markets globally with 700+ methods and is the obvious global pairing. Paysafe adds Skrill and Neteller wallet reach to 50M+ European users plus broad iGaming licensing. AstroPay covers LATAM and India through a player wallet with Premier League brand recognition. PayRetailers does LATAM with 12 African markets and SoftSwiss/Slotegrator connectors. Trustly handles European open banking at 0-1%. NOWPayments solves crypto with 350+ coins.
When to Choose an Alternative
NuveiPair with Nuvei for global card acquiring, 700+ methods across 50+ markets, AI-based smart routing and iGaming-licensed compliance stack. Most operators using Cellulant for Africa run Nuvei or similar for everywhere else.
PaysafeChoose Paysafe if European wallet reach matters — Skrill and Neteller give access to 50M+ users where Cellulant has zero coverage. Paysafe also holds gambling licenses across multiple jurisdictions, which Cellulant lacks.
AstroPayChoose AstroPay if LATAM is a bigger part of the player base than Africa. AstroPay covers LATAM plus India through a player wallet with Premier League brand recognition. Lighter rolling reserve (5-8% for 3 months) than Cellulant's 180-day terms.
PayRetailersChoose PayRetailers if SoftSwiss or Slotegrator plug-and-play matters and you also need LATAM. PayRetailers covers 12 African markets (lighter than Cellulant's 35) plus 10+ LATAM countries with pre-built iGaming platform connectors Cellulant doesn't offer.
TrustlyPair with Trustly for European open banking. 30+ countries at 0-1% deposit fees and T+0 settlement. Trustly is the right answer for European players where Cellulant has nothing.
NOWPaymentsPair with NOWPayments if crypto deposits matter. 350+ coins at 0.5-1% with SoftSwiss integration. Cellulant supports zero crypto, so this fills the gap directly.
Nuvei
Paysafe
Trustly
NOWPayments
AstroPay
Local Methods PSP
PayRetailers
Local LATAM PSP
Nuvei
Full-Stack PSPEnd of Report. Cellulant Provider Assessment Report 2026
Prepared and reviewed by the iGaming Payment Solutions Editorial Team · May 12, 2026