The verdict in three sentences
For a West African business, the right payment aggregator is chosen on three numbers: the real fee rate per payment method, the payout delay to the bank account and the cost of accounting reconciliation, not on the list of logos displayed. With fees of 1.5 to 3.5% and payouts from D+1 to D+7, the gap between two contracts easily reaches 4 to 5 million FCFA (about 6,100 to 7,600 EUR) per year for 20 million FCFA of monthly volume. Between 5 and 100 million FCFA per month, the winning setup is often Wave and Orange Money direct or via an aggregator, plus a card aggregator, with a clean integration at 0 to 1.5 million FCFA (0 to about 2,300 EUR).
What a business really pays to collect online
A private school in Dakar collecting tuition, a distributor invoicing resellers, a B2B service provider selling subscriptions: all face the same cost items. Transaction fees are visible, but payout delays weigh on cash flow, and unreconciled gaps cost days of accounting work every month. The example below uses Senegal, the reference market for mobile money in francophone West Africa.
| Payment method (Senegal, 2026) | Indicative business fees | Payout delay | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wave (merchant payment or API) | about 1% | D+0 to D+1 to the Wave Business account | cheapest, widely used in Dakar |
| Orange Money (via API or aggregator) | 1.5 to 2.5% | D+1 to D+3 | essential outside Dakar |
| Free Money (via aggregator) | 1.5 to 2.5% | D+1 to D+3 | lower volumes |
| Local Visa or Mastercard (via aggregator) | 2.5 to 3.5% | D+3 to D+7 | banked parents and customers |
| International card (diaspora) | 3 to 3.5% + FX | D+5 to D+7 | useful for the diaspora |
| Bank transfer | 0 to 0.5% | D+1 to D+3 | large B2B amounts, manual reconciliation |
These rates are 2026 orders of magnitude seen on small business contracts; they can be negotiated down above 20 to 30 million FCFA of monthly volume.
Comparing aggregators: the criteria that matter
Aggregators active in Senegal and the region (PayDunya, CinetPay, PayTech, Bictorys, InTouch and others) bundle several payment methods behind a single integration. They are genuinely useful for a business that wants to offer Orange Money, Free Money and cards without signing four contracts. But terms vary widely: flat fees per method, payout delay, limits, required documents and quality of transaction reports.
| Selection criterion | What to require | 2026 range |
|---|---|---|
| Fees per payment method | written grid, no hidden withdrawal fees | 1 to 3.5% |
| Payout delay | contractual commitment, automatic payout | D+1 to D+7 |
| Integration fees | documented API, sandbox | 0 to 1,500,000 FCFA |
| Documents and guarantees | NINEA, RCCM, bank account, sometimes a deposit | deposit of 0 to 1 month of volume |
| Per-transaction limits | suited to your B2B amounts | 500,000 to 5,000,000 FCFA by method |
| Refunds | written procedure and timing | 2 to 10 business days |
| Accounting export | file per transaction with invoice reference | CSV or daily API |
The most neglected point is reconciliation. An aggregator that pays out one daily lump sum without fee details per transaction forces the accountant to rebuild each payment. Require a unique reference per invoice, passed to the aggregator and returned in the confirmation webhook.
Which architecture for your monthly volume
| Monthly collected volume | Recommended architecture | Weighted average fees |
|---|---|---|
| 5 to 10 million FCFA | one aggregator for all methods | 2 to 2.8% |
| 10 to 30 million FCFA | Wave direct + aggregator for OM, Free Money and cards | 1.5 to 2.2% |
| 30 to 60 million FCFA | Wave and Orange Money direct + card aggregator, negotiated rates | 1.2 to 1.8% |
| 60 to 100 million FCFA | direct contracts everywhere, two aggregators for redundancy | 1 to 1.5% |
| Large B2B amounts | transfer with reference + mobile payment for small invoices | under 1% |
The higher the volume, the more it pays to sign directly with Wave and Orange Money and keep an aggregator for cards. Redundancy also protects against outages: one day of downtime during school enrollment season can cost dozens of payments.
Mini case study
Need a professional website?
Kolonell builds websites that attract clients, optimized for the Sénégalese market. Free quote in 2 minutes.
Mrs Ndiaye, finance director of a private school with 900 students in Dakar, collects 25 million FCFA per month in tuition. With a single aggregator at 2.7% on average, she pays 675,000 FCFA in monthly fees, or 8.1 million per year. Moving to Wave direct at 1% for 60% of volume and an aggregator at 2.3% for the rest, fees drop to 380,000 FCFA per month, or 4.56 million per year. The annual saving of 3.54 million FCFA (about 5,400 EUR) pays back in under 4 months an integration at 1,200,000 FCFA that also includes automatic reconciliation per student and late payment reminders.
FAQ
Do you need a registered company to collect online in Senegal?
Yes, aggregators and Wave Business generally require a NINEA, an RCCM and a bank account in the company's name. Onboarding takes 3 days to 3 weeks depending on the file.
Can we collect from the diaspora in euros?
Yes via international cards, with fees of 3 to 3.5% plus an FX margin. Payout is in FCFA, often at D+5 to D+7.
How much does a clean integration into our website or software cost?
From 0 FCFA with a payment link or standard plugin to 1,500,000 FCFA for an API integration with webhooks, reconciliation and dashboard. Lead time is 2 to 6 weeks.
How do we avoid unreconciled payments?
Generate a unique reference per invoice, pass it with each payment and reconcile automatically via the webhook. Gaps usually fall below 1% of transactions.
What happens if the aggregator goes down?
With a single provider, you lose that day's sales. A second active method, for example Wave direct, covers 50 to 70% of payments in Dakar in practice.
Let's scope your project. Share your monthly volume, payment methods and current software: we quote a Wave, Orange Money and card integration between 400,000 and 1,500,000 FCFA, delivered in 2 to 6 weeks. Detailed quote within 48 h. WhatsApp +221 77 596 93 33.
Mohamed Bah
Fondateur, Kolonell
Passionate about digital and entrepreneurship in Africa, Mohamed has been helping Sénégalese businesses with their digital transformation since 2020. Founder of Kolonell, he believes every SME deserves a professional and accessible online présence.
