A craft shop in the Kigali Convention Centre area lost a sale last week. Tourist, liked the product, ready to pay. Cash only. The tourist had no cash and the nearest ATM was a 15-minute walk. She said she’d come back. She didn’t.
A different shop across the street accepts MoMo, cards, and cash. They don’t lose those sales.
The payment landscape in 2026
- MTN Mobile Money (MoMo): the dominant payment method. Over 90% of mobile money transactions in Rwanda. If you accept nothing else digital, accept MoMo
- Airtel Money: smaller market share but growing. Worth accepting, especially if your customers are outside Kigali
- Visa/Mastercard: essential for tourists, expats, and corporate clients. Still a minority of domestic transactions
- Cash: still king for small daily transactions, but declining for larger purchases
- Bank transfers: used for B2B and large transactions
What you should accept
Depends on your business:
- Retail, food, services: Cash + MoMo at minimum. Add Airtel Money and cards if possible
- Tourism and hospitality: Cards are non-negotiable. Add MoMo for local customers
- B2B services: Bank transfer + MoMo. Cards optional
- Online sales: MoMo + cards through a payment gateway (Flutterwave, DPO, IremboPay)
Setting up MoMo for business
Personal MoMo works for very small businesses, but has transaction limits and no reporting. MTN MoMo Business gives you:
- Higher transaction limits
- Business-specific reports and statements
- Integration options for POS systems and websites
- Professional appearance (customers see your business name, not a personal number)
Visit an MTN service centre with your business registration documents to upgrade.
The online payment gap
Accepting payments on your website requires a payment gateway. In Rwanda, Flutterwave and DPO are the most established options. They handle MoMo, cards, and bank transfers through a single integration.
If your website is built through a service like Kisimenti, payment integration is typically handled as part of the setup — you don’t need to deal with the technical integration yourself.
The rule is simple: every payment method you don’t accept is a customer who can’t pay you. And a customer who can’t pay you is a customer who pays your competitor.