What happens when a country moves from cash-only transactions to instant digital payments that work for everyone?

In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I sit down with Steve Haley, Director of Market Development at The Mojaloop Foundation, to discuss how open and interoperable payment systems are helping reshape financial inclusion across Africa and other emerging markets.

For many listeners in Europe or North America, instant payments and digital banking are often taken for granted. But Steve explains how millions of people around the world still live in economies where cash dominates daily life, and where even those with mobile money accounts remain disconnected from the wider financial system. In some countries, people have even been forced to carry two phones because competing mobile payment providers could not communicate with each other.

Our conversation focuses heavily on Liberia, where the Liberian Inclusive Instant Payments System was deployed in just 73 business days. Built using Mojaloop technology in partnership with the Central Bank of Liberia, ThitsaWorks, and AfricaNenda, the system now allows interoperable mobile money transfers between major operators, including MTN and Orange Liberia.

Steve shares why this matters far beyond convenience. Removing barriers between providers means people no longer need money trapped across separate accounts, merchants can accept digital payments more easily, and governments can distribute payroll and public payments through faster and more transparent systems.

We also discuss how mobile wallets are helping expand account ownership across Liberia, which now exceeds 50 percent according to World Bank data, and why interoperability may become the missing piece that transforms access into meaningful financial participation.

Another fascinating part of our discussion centers on the future of cross-border payments in Africa. Steve explains how many transactions between neighboring African countries still route through systems in the United States, increasing both cost and complexity. He believes interoperable instant payment systems across the continent could dramatically lower those barriers and unlock new levels of regional trade.

This episode offers a thoughtful reminder that digital transformation is not always about the latest AI model or enterprise software platform. Sometimes it is about giving people the ability to send money, pay merchants, receive salaries, and participate in the economy with the same ease many of us already expect every day.

So how different would life feel if digital payments finally became accessible to everyone, regardless of where they live or who they bank with?