Tunisia: A Fintech Ecosystem Caught Between Cash and Code

Tunisia enters 2026 with a paradox: an increasingly sophisticated fintech ecosystem coexisting with a surge in physical cash. Cash circulating outside the banking system reached a record TND27.5 billion (around $9.6 billion) in February 2026, roughly 20% higher than a year earlier, even as the country maintains a strong talent pool, an active Startup Act framework and targeted central bank initiatives. The government’s 2025-2026 digital transformation programme lists 138 projects, including 99 to digitise public administration and 18 focused on the digital economy.

"Tunisia should, on paper, be one of North Africa’s natural fintech hubs," the analysis notes, capturing a prevailing view in the ecosystem.

Regulation and reform: a hands-on approach

"The central bank opened the door-but kept a hand on it," is an apt summary of the Central Bank of Tunisia’s (BCT) strategy. The BCT runs a regulatory sandbox that allows fintechs and incumbent banks to test innovative products under supervision, and operates the BCT‑Lab to connect the central bank with fintech companies, universities, researchers and technology specialists. The sandbox accepts proposals across technologies and product types, provided they are genuinely innovative and produce identifiable customer benefits.

Legislative reforms have also reshaped the environment. The Startup Act of 2018 created a 20-measure framework to ease the establishment and scaling of innovative businesses, and the broader Startup Tunisia programme includes a fund-of-funds initiative targeting up to €200 million for investment across more than 13 venture funds. Those reforms aim to position Tunisia as a base for regional expansion across the Middle East and Africa.

Practical fintechs, persistent cash

Tunisian fintechs have produced practical payments infrastructure addressing real market frictions. Companies such as Flouci have developed digital financial applications combining electronic payments and financial services to popularise app-based finance. Konnect focuses on online payments for freelancers, SMEs and larger businesses, offering payment links, APIs and e-commerce integrations that accept Tunisian cards, international Visa and Mastercard payments and La Poste’s e‑Dinar. Paymee provides gateways, APIs and payment links in a platform that accepts Tunisian and international bank cards alongside e‑Dinar products.

• Major banks in the market include BIAT, Banque Nationale Agricole, Amen Bank and Attijari Bank Tunisia.
• Fintechs face a payments bottleneck: talented developers can create digital products, but receiving payments—especially from international customers—has historically been complicated.

That payments bottleneck carries macroeconomic consequences. Higher cash holdings outside banks limit deposit bases that banks could transform into credit for households and businesses, and cash-heavy transactions make economic activity harder to formalise. A recent policy change—tighter rules and stronger penalties around cheques—appears to have pushed many consumers and businesses toward cash rather than digital alternatives.

Outlook: digitisation of government as the nudge

Authorities are betting that a broader digital government push will change behaviours. Tunisia’s mobile e‑Houwiya identity enables citizens to authenticate for online government services, and the 2026–2030 ICT development plan is under preparation to shape the next phase of policy. The expectation is that as more interactions between citizens, businesses and the state go digital, confidence in electronic payments and financial services will follow.

The country’s strengths—engineers fluent in French, Arabic and often English, established banks, payment-focused start-ups and a supportive Startup Act—mean Tunisia has the building blocks for fintech growth. The immediate test is behavioural: translating regulatory openness and technological capability into everyday use by consumers and businesses accustomed to cash.