Consumer apps · Proposal
Sankofa
Pay the institution directly, instead of sending cash that gets redirected.
Built for Diaspora senders paying school fees, clinic bills and rent
The evidence
Sub-Saharan Africa is still the most expensive place on earth to receive money — 7.9% on average against a 3% global target, and 14.2% on the South Africa to Mozambique corridor.
Nigeria's cross-border payment volume on the PAPSS network fell 53% even as the network grew to 19 countries. The rails exist. The consumer layer does not.
The gap
Almost every remittance product moves fungible cash on the US and UK to Nigeria corridor. Very little pays a named school, clinic or landlord directly, and almost nothing serves the intra-African corridors that are priced worst.
How it would work
Pick the institution, not the person. Funds settle to the school or clinic, with a receipt to both sides. Built on mobile money and the non-resident bank identity rails that opened in 2025.
What we do not know
We could not retrieve direct user-complaint evidence for the redirected-cash problem — it is inferred from the shape of the market. That needs validating with real senders before anyone writes code.
This is a researched proposal, not a commitment. Nothing here has been validated with a paying customer yet.