Destta, a U.S.-registered fintech company, has officially launched the beta version of its global remittance platform in Ethiopia, positioning itself to capture a growing share of diaspora inflows through formal financial channels.
Speaking at the launch event held at Hyatt Regency Addis Ababa, Founder and CEO Dawit Berhanu emphasized the platform’s broad transaction capability, enabling users to send funds ranging from as little as $5 to as much as $1 million from over 101 countries into Ethiopia. He noted that this range is designed to accommodate both small family remittances and larger cross-border investment flows.
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Destta has partnered with Commercial Bank of Ethiopia (CBE) as its local settlement partner, ensuring that transfers are directly deposited into bank accounts within the formal financial system. According to the company, the platform displays exchange rates provided by CBE in real time, with no hidden fees, aiming to deliver a transparent and cost-effective user experience.
The launch comes at a pivotal moment for Ethiopia’s financial sector. Following the country’s post-2024 foreign exchange reforms, which introduced a more market-based regime and opened space for digital financial services, a significant portion of remittance inflows, estimated at over half, continues to move through informal channels such as hawala. Destta seeks to redirect these flows into regulated systems, improving transparency and strengthening the formal economy.
Chief Technology Officer Nahom Getu highlighted the platform’s core pillars: compliance, user experience, reliability, and deep integration with CBE. To support these, Destta has integrated identity verification through Persona and leveraged payment infrastructure from Stripe and its subsidiaries. The platform supports multiple payment methods, including ACH transfers in the U.S., SEPA in Europe, UK bank transfers, and card payments such as Apple Pay, Venmo, Visa, and Mastercard.
The event drew senior policymakers and financial sector leaders, including Fitsum Arega, Eyob Tekalign, and Mamo Mihretu, signaling strong institutional backing for initiatives aimed at formalizing diaspora remittances.
As competition intensifies in Ethiopia’s evolving digital finance landscape, Destta’s entry underscores a broader push to modernize cross-border payments and capture untapped flows within the regulated financial ecosystem.
Source: EBR
