Mampe Seema sends money home to Lesotho every single month without fail. The 53-year-old domestic worker, based in Johannesburg, relies on those transfers to cover her family's school fees, groceries, and daily household needs. For years, it was simple. Then it wasn't.
When South Africa's Reserve Bank introduced stricter processing and verification requirements for low-value cross-border electronic fund transfers in 2025, the extra steps created real anxiety for people like Seema. "When the banking process became more difficult, I worried that my family would not receive the money when they needed it most," she told TechCabal. A friend's recommendation pointed her toward fintech platform Mukuru, and she hasn't looked back since.
Seema is far from alone. An estimated 400,000 Basotho migrants live and work in South Africa, making up roughly 11% of the country's immigrant population according to Statistics South Africa. Many of them are now turning to fintechs like Mukuru, Sasai, Ria Money, and hello Paisa to move money across the border with less friction. The shift is a direct response to the new compliance landscape shaped by the South African Reserve Bank's push to strengthen anti-money laundering controls and align with international financial standards.
The stakes are high. Personal remittances account for nearly 20.9% of Lesotho's GDP, according to World Bank data, meaning delays or disruptions in those flows hit families at the most basic level. The question now is how quickly the fintech sector can scale to meet the demand it's suddenly inheriting.
Originally published by TechCabal.