Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, January 8th, 2026,
MENA's First Institutional L2 partners with Africa's Leading Mobile Payment Service, Expanding Blockchain Access Across Eight Markets
The partnership will connect M-Pesa's user base across Kenya, DR Congo, Egypt, Ethiopia, Ghana, Lesotho, Mozambique, and Tanzania with institutional-grade blockchain infrastructure. The collaboration focuses on creating digital rails for individuals and small businesses throughout these emerging markets.
Expanding Financial Access Through Blockchain Rails
Since its 2007 launch in Kenya, M-Pesa has enabled millions to access financial services through mobile devices, bypassing traditional banking barriers. The ADI Foundation collaboration looks to build on this foundation by adding blockchain capabilities to M-Pesa's existing infrastructure.
"M-Pesa has been amazing in terms of financial inclusion," said Huy Nguyen Trieu, council member on the ADI Foundation's board of advisers. "Our view is that we can push it further again by providing the right digital infrastructure, both for individuals and SMEs. The foundation's infrastructure can act as the building blocks to accelerate digital transformation."
M-Pesa's established mobile money infrastructure across eight countries provides a foundation for extending blockchain capabilities to both individual users and small businesses.
Sitoyo Lopokoiyit, CEO of M-Pesa Africa, a joint venture between Safaricom and Vodacom, noted the partnership's potential: "We are excited to partner with ADI Foundation to tap into their expertise around new technologies and how these can transform financial services."
Strategic Focus on African Markets
M-Pesa represents ADI Foundation's most significant African partnership to date. Nguyen Trieu stated that African users will comprise a major segment of the foundation's goal to onboard one billion people to blockchain by 2030.
ADI Chain solves the specific problems that have slowed down institutional blockchain adoption across African markets: this infrastructure provides regulatory compliance frameworks that work within local requirements, transaction infrastructure operates within existing payment rails, and security standards meet government expectations, allowing institutions to deploy blockchain technology without compromising sovereignty or control.
ADI Chain will also support cross-border payment settlement for Abu Dhabi-based enterprises operating across international markets through the dirham-backed stablecoin, estimated for early 2026.
ADI Foundation currently maintains active partnerships spanning 20 countries, with more than 50 institutional, enterprise, and government projects preparing to deploy on the network.
Technical Foundation
First Abu Dhabi Bank and IHC will issue a UAE Dirham-backed stablecoin on ADI Chain under regulatory oversight from the UAE Central Bank. This structure creates a compliance blueprint for mobile money platforms evaluating blockchain integration.
ADI Chain's architecture rests on three core principles: regulatory compliance embedded at the infrastructure level, operational efficiency through advanced cryptography, and institutional-grade security protocols. The network implements ZKsync's Airbender technology, representing the first production deployment of this zero-knowledge proof system. ADI Infrastructure partners include Alchemy for reliable RPC infrastructure and real-time data services, WalletConnect for wallet-to-application connectivity, and Covalent for blockchain data indexing.
Sirius International Holding, the technology arm of IHC – the largest publicly-traded conglomerate in MENA – established the ADI Foundation in December 2024. The foundation operates from Abu Dhabi with a specific mandate: create government-grade blockchain systems that work within the operational constraints of emerging market governments and financial institutions.
The M-Pesa partnership provides a model for how existing mobile money platforms with proven reach can add blockchain capabilities through purpose-built infrastructure designed for regulatory environments in developing economies. For M-Pesa, blockchain integration is going to enable cross-border payment settlement, stablecoin transactionsthat help users manage currency volatility, and access to digital financial services beyond traditional mobile money.
About ADI Foundation & ADI Chain
ADI Chain functions as the MENA region's first institutional Layer 2 network for stablecoins and tokenized real-world assets. First Abu Dhabi Bank and IHC's Central Bank-regulated stablecoin will settle on ADI Chain infrastructure. Operating under Compliance, Efficiency, and Security principles, the network serves government blockchain deployments across Middle Eastern, Asian, and African markets.
Mohammad Rajab
