Description
Join panel moderator Julie Guetta, Mojaloop Foundation’s product solutions lead, as she and a panel of guests dig into why cross-border payments remain so costly for SMEs and what it will take to bring those costs down. The discussion will address the real pressures facing small businesses, the hurdles hub operators must clear, and the practical steps that could open the door to implementing more inclusive payment systems that support sustainable economic growth.
The expert panel includes:
- Jedidah Ndebele, Executive Secretary & CEO, COMESA Clearing House
- Amira Karim, Head of Public Policy, Payments & Financial Services, Amazon
- Monica Jasuja, Chief Expansion and Innovation Officer, EPA Asia
- Muhammad Imaduddin, Director, Digital Innovation and Settlements, State Bank of Pakistan
Why It Matters
The fees charged to SMEs for cross-border payments remain extremely high, in part because the underlying costs of processing these payments are still very high. This often limits SMEs’ ability to trade internationally, even with neighboring countries, as high fees make lower-value cross-border transactions uneconomical. This slows SMEs’ economic development and, in turn, the development of the countries they operate in, especially given that SMEs are widely recognized as the backbone of most economies.
In this session, we will explore the real-world impact of high cross-border payment fees on SMEs, examine the operational and structural challenges hub operators face when trying to reduce these costs, and discuss practical solutions to lower processing costs and hopefully fees, thereby making a broader range of transactions economically viable and contributing to stronger national economic growth.
Panelists will discuss:
- The key challenges SMEs face when making or receiving cross-border payments
- Why cross-border payment costs remain high despite the industry’s focus on reducing them
- The major cost pitfalls for hub operators
- The positive cross-border payment experiences SMEs can point to and what can be learned from them
- Practical interventions (technical, operational, or regulatory) that could meaningfully reduce costs and increase inclusion
