This proposal seeks authorization for the second half of the Strategic Grant aimed at accelerating the adoption of Celo ecosystem apps in Africa. Following MiniPay's recent milestone of reaching 6 million wallet activations - each tied to a verified phone number and making it arguably one of the fastest-growing self-custodial wallets worldwide - this additional funding will be used:
The grant will be disbursed in $CELO on a quarterly schedule. Opera intends to responsibly hold $CELO tokens and actively engage in Celo governance, reflecting its commitment to the long-term success of the ecosystem.
This initiative is key to Celo's growth, offering new avenues to onboard millions of potential users, foster stablecoin utility, and deepen integrations within local economies. By leveraging Opera's extensive footprint on the continent - already proven successful with MiniPay's rapid growth - this grant will unlock the next phase of Celo's expansion into critical markets and showcase the potential of ecosystem solutions to a broad user base.
Opera introduced MiniPay in September 2023 integrated inside of Opera Mini, one of the most popular browsers in Africa, kicking off the roll out in Nigeria and subsequently expanding to Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, Malawi, Tanzania, and additional key markets across the continent. MiniPay launched only supporting cUSD stablecoin and grew to over 3 million wallet activations generating over 4 Million daily cUSD transactions before later adding support for both USDT and USDC stablecoins on Celo in July 2024. This update was executed with the innovative “Pockets” feature - which streamlines multi-stablecoin management, enabling users to easily swap between stablecoins seamlessly and at no extra cost - powered by Mento Protocol.
In October 2024, MiniPay expanded beyond its initial integration as a feature of the Opera Mini browser, launching as a standalone app on Android, and expanding to 50+ more countries globally and unlocking remittance to existing users in Africa as a use case. The standalone app on Android has since surpassed 600,000 downloads on the Google Play Store and the iOS version, currently in TestFlight, is slated for release in early 2025. With this expanded availability, MiniPay continues to broaden its global footprint, connecting users on the continent to the global economy and bringing seamless, stablecoin-based transactions to users worldwide.
As of today, MiniPay records over 1.5 Million monthly active wallets and 900,000 daily transactions on the Celo blockchain. Following the addition of USDT support, active USDT addresses on Celo have increased from 27,400 in July 2024 to 894,400 in January 2025 (source: Artemis)., demonstrating heightened adoption and underscoring MiniPay's pivotal role in catalyzing stablecoin usage and broader DeFi participation.
MiniPay's rapid growth and innovative approach has attracted significant media attention, with major publications recognizing its impact and featuring stories on MiniPay. Moreover, industry KOLs have also commended MiniPay's user-friendly design and potential. Their endorsements underscore the broad market excitement and validate MiniPay as a true innovation in the space. Additionally, initiatives like the MiniPay Challenge have showcased real success stories from the very users participating on Celo every day.
The second half of the grant will towards acceleration the following;
MiniPay now integrates 13 crypto–fiat ramps, covering over 53 countries and over 35 local currencies. Partners include Unlimit, Transak, Banxa, Ramp, Partna, Yellow Card, TransFi, Cashramp, Fonbank, Paychant, and MoonPay - ensuring a hyperlocalized experience for buying and selling stablecoins across the globe.
In addition, Opera has forged key partnerships to provide zero-fee on- and off-ramping across over 35 local currencies. These strategic alliances have eliminated traditional conversion costs, enabling users to seamlessly move funds between local currencies and stablecoins at no extra charge. This initiative not only drives increased user engagement by reducing transaction friction but also solidifies MiniPay's reputation as one of the most accessible and affordable ways to buy, sell, and spend stablecoins.
The MiniPay Discover Page (now the Mini Apps section) features 15 Celo apps, each of which automatically inherits MiniPay's localized cash-in/cash-out experience - eliminating the need for separate on/off ramps. This ensures that users, regardless of local currency or location, can instantly access and interact with these ecosystem applications. Integrated Mini Apps now record over 50 million weekly impressions and 5 million weekly app opens, reflecting high user engagement and adoption.
Opera has played a pivotal role in this success by providing comprehensive product, design, marketing, and business development support, along with dedicated funding for co-marketing campaigns and promotional initiatives using Opera's owned inventory. This robust support structure has empowered external ecosystem builders to refine their offerings, reach new audiences, and leverage MiniPay's seamless infrastructure to deliver practical solutions. These efforts have directly contributed to transforming promising projects into high-impact applications that drive everyday stablecoin usage.
Opera has provided funding for co-marketing campaigns, product, design, and business development support, and in-app promotions to integrated Mini Apps. This support has helped refine their offering, reach new audiences, and leverage MiniPay's infrastructure to deliver practical solutions - spanning remittances, bill payments, gaming, education, and more. Below are externally built Mini Apps that exemplify the impact of these efforts, followed by Opera-incubated apps that further enrich the MiniPay user experience.
The Donate Mini App, integrated within MiniPay in December 2024 is making donations more accessible. Launched first in December 2024, and currently featuring Code Yetu and WeThinkCode - 2 local NGOs from Kenya and South Africa respectively. The Donate app has since facilitated over 12,000 donations by leveraging MiniPay's robust, borderless payment infrastructure. The app allows these local charities to receive contributions in stablecoins from donors in over 53 countries, eliminating traditional barriers and high fees.
This streamlined donation process not only increases the reach of local charities but also enhances transparency and efficiency in fund transfers. The success of the Donate App underscores MiniPay's ability to drive real-world impact through decentralized financial solutions, enabling charitable organizations to access a global donor base and receive support quickly and cost-effectively.
BitGifty's evolution is a shining example of how access to a global distribution network can redefine a service. Originating from the Celo Camp Batch 8, Opera worked with the BitGifty team, advising on product, design, and marketing, eventually finding it a home inside of MiniPay at the end of March 2024. Today, BitGifty is a thriving platform that has facilitated over 400,000 local bill payments - from electricity and airtime to data and cable subscriptions - across Nigeria, Ghana, Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, and Uganda. BitGifty not only simplifies everyday payments with stablecoins but has also benefitted from Opera-facilitated strategic partnerships and funded co-marketing campaigns to offer zero-fees and cashback on local bills paid, further expanding its reach and driving adoption by local users.
Mdundo, a culturally tailored music streaming service, launched within MiniPay with a focus on affordability and local relevance. Offering a free three-day trial and subscription plans starting as low as $0.50, Mdundo quickly captured the market - amassing over 20,000 subscribed users in the first few days going live. This rapid adoption underscores MiniPay's unique ability to empower innovative solutions that meet the everyday needs of users, bridging digital finance and entertainment. Mdundo's success demonstrates how a robust, borderless ecosystem can drive engagement and unlock opportunities in sectors that directly resonate with local communities
Mento Labs, the team behind the cUSD stablecoin also launched a Mini App to drive engagement for cUSD stablecoins among MiniPay users through two airdrop campaigns. Leveraging MiniPay's frictionless and localized cash-in/cash-out experience and user-friendly send flow, Mento quickly accelerated token distribution, with the second season fully allocating 10 million $MENTO tokens two weeks ahead of schedule - demonstrating rapid adoption and reinforcing stablecoin usage across the ecosystem.
Initial Grant: On December 15, 2023, the community approved a grant to support MiniPay's growth. Detailed updates are posted in Q1-Q4 2024 progress reports on the Celo Forum.
Subsequent Proposal: Having successfully disbursed and utilized the first five installments, this proposal requests authorization for the remaining budget, ensuring ongoing initiatives continue without disruption.
Opera remains deeply committed to fostering a vibrant global ecosystem by supporting builders on Celo. This commitment is reflected through:
Beyond these partnerships, MiniPay has cultivated a thriving community of over 40,000 members across various channels.
On December 15, 2023, the community allocated a Strategic Grant to support and grow the ecosystem via MiniPay. Detailed information on the initial grant can be found here. As part of our commitment, we have published quarterly progress reports on the Celo Forum, detailing MiniPay's achievements and impact.
Following the successful claim of the first five installments according to the agreed timeline, we now request authorization for the remaining budget in this subsequent proposal.
We remain committed to advancing MiniPay with tangible progress, while recognizing that market conditions, technical developments, and strategic opportunities can shift over time. Leveraging our unique position, MiniPay is poised to deliver on-chain services to millions of underserved users - offering a transformative path to global financial opportunities. Below is a high-level outline of our next steps:
iOS Availability: Build on the Android standalone success by pursuing an iOS release, extending MiniPay's coverage to Apple users on the continent.
Enhanced Marketing & Partnerships: Expand promotional efforts across Opera's product suite (e.g., Opera Mini, Opera for Android, Opera News), spotlighting new ecosystem applications as they become available.
Refined On/Off-Ramp Experience: Continue to streamline the “Add Cash & Withdraw” flows, aiming to reduce friction and improve the user journey for buying, selling, sending, and spending stablecoins.
Selective Market & Use-Case Expansion: Explore additional geographies and partnership opportunities that demonstrate strong alignment with MiniPay's mission, such as niche remittance corridors and newly emerging creator-economy segments.
Ecosystem Growth & Developer Engagement: Encourage the addition of new, locally relevant Mini Apps - focusing on high-impact integrations that align with user needs.
Community & DAO Initiatives: Host or sponsor workshops and hackathons in collaboration with local/regional DAOs to support developer innovation and cultivate on-the-ground ambassadors.
Increased Synergy with Opera Properties Deepen MiniPay integration across multiple Opera platforms, unifying user experiences and enabling cross-platform transactions.
Continuous Feature Iteration Adapt MiniPay's roadmap based on real-world feedback - e.g., improved merchant tools or advanced stablecoin payment features - as user adoption and market readiness evolve.
Extended Global Outreach & Partnerships: Seek strategic collaborations with NGOs, financial institutions, and corporate partners, particularly in regions where stablecoin solutions can drive meaningful impact.
We will continue to provide quarterly updates on our progress and invite community feedback to ensure that MiniPay evolves in step with real-world demands.
The purpose of the grant, the claim address, and the claim agenda remain unchanged. For reference, the details are as follows:
Receiving Address: 0x6f62E32cae54D66e234F0d1e27be7e33896Dc4CE
| Milestone | $ Value in $CELO |
|---|---|
| Q4 2023 | $568,182 |
| Q1 2024 | $568,182 |
| Q2 2024 | $568,182 |
| Q3 2024 | $568,182 |
| Q4 2024 | $568,182 |
| Q1 2025 | $568,182 |
| Q2 2025 | $568,182 |
| Q3 2025 | $568,182 |
| Q4 2025 | $568,182 |
| Q1 2026 | $568,182 |
| TOTAL | $5,681,820 |
Funds will be fully withdrawn upon approval and transferred to the Opera's multisig wallet: 0x6f62E32cae54D66e234F0d1e27be7e33896Dc4CE
We propose to set the $CELO price to $0.56 (last 90D avg) and add it to the remaining authorized unclaimed amount from the first allocation. The total $CELO allocation will be 6,496,828.71 $CELO.
Opera will publish quarterly progress reports before claiming each tranche to maintain full transparency and accountability.
All other terms from the initial proposal still apply.
The continued success of MiniPay relies on the support of the Celo community. We welcome all forms of engagement and invite community members to build applications and solutions with real-world use cases to find a home in MiniPay, share feedback, become regional ambassadors, and sign up for early access for Minipay on iOS
We extend our gratitude to the entire community for their unwavering support, insight, and enthusiasm. Special thanks go to the builders, ecosystem supporters and regional DAO collaborators whose continuous efforts and feedback have helped shape MiniPay's evolving roadmap.