UnionPay International and Pesapal Partner to Boost Cross-Border Payments and Tourism in East Africa

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania, Aug. 6, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- UnionPay International and Pesapal have announced a strategic partnership to expand UnionPay card acceptance across Pesapal's Point-of-Sale (POS) merchant network. Launching initially in Tanzania followed by Rwanda, this collaboration significantly enhances payment convenience for international travellers while unlocking new commercial opportunities for local businesses.

As the lead market for the rollout, Tanzania will see immediate expansion of UnionPay acceptance across key tourism and commercial sectors, including hospitality, retail, restaurants, transport, petroleum, and lifestyle merchants. The enablement allows international UnionPay cardholders to seamlessly make in-store purchases using both contact and contactless (tap-to-pay) payment technologies.

The rollout immediately expands UnionPay's acceptance network by more than 3000 merchant locations across Tanzania and Rwanda, significantly strengthening payment acceptance across hospitality, retail, tourism, petroleum, and SME merchants. Through Pesapal's acquiring network, the partnership represents one of UnionPay's largest merchant acceptance expansions in East Africa, reinforcing its presence across two of the region's fastest-growing digital economies.

The partnership comes at a pivotal time as East Africa experiences a significant surge in Chinese tourism and strengthening commercial ties. By integrating UnionPay into Pesapal's EMV-compliant POS infrastructure, local merchants are uniquely positioned to benefit from the growing China-Africa trade corridor: Access to one of the world's largest cardholder networks eliminates payment friction for high-value global consumers and business travelers, reducing transaction barriers and driving cross-border revenue growth for local businesses with confidence and efficiency.

"Tourism and cross-border commerce continue to play a major role in East Africa's economic growth, particularly in Tanzania," said Bupe Mwakalundwa, Country Manager at Pesapal Tanzania. "By enabling UnionPay POS acceptance across our merchant network, we are equipping local businesses with the modern financial infrastructure needed to better serve international travellers, helping them thrive in the global digital economy".

"UnionPay International remains deeply committed to expanding seamless payment acceptance across Africa's key tourism and commercial markets", said Feng Chen, General Manager UnionPay International Africa Region. "Through our partnership with Pesapal, merchants in Tanzania and Rwanda can now provide international visitors with a trusted and secure payment experience while benefiting from increased access to global consumer spending."

About UnionPay International

UnionPay International (UPI) is focused on expanding the global acceptance network of UnionPay cards. UnionPay cards are accepted in 183 countries and regions, including 51 African countries. UPI provides high-quality, cost-effective, and secure cross-border payment services to the world's largest cardholder base while ensuring convenient local services to a growing number of global merchants.

About Pesapal

Pesapal serves everyday businesses and their customers across Africa, simplifying how they pay, get paid, manage operations, and grow.

We provide secure payments, access to financing, and business tools through connected suite of solutions; built for the realities of doing business in Africa.

Businesses across Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda, and Zambia rely on Pesapal as the trusted infrastructure behind their commerce.