Fayda Pass Wallet Nears Rollout as Ethiopia Scales National ID Program

Fayda Pass Wallet, first announced in May during the ID4Africa 2025 conference, is expected to reach the Ethiopian market between September and December, said Yared Endale, Cluster Head, Eastern Africa & Country Manager at Visa.  

The wallet, a credential platform capable of secure online and offline verification for multiple services, is being developed through a collaboration between the National ID Program Office, the Cooperative Bank of Oromia (COOP), TECH5, and Visa. Through a biometric-enabled system, the wallet will provide secure access to financial and e-governance services. The Fayda wallet utilizes a platform for managing digital identities, contactless multi-biometric capture technology, and matching tools for electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) verification and digital onboarding.  

Sharing the update during a panel last week at the African Fintech Summit’s Addis Ababa Mixer, Yared described Fayda Pass as a hub for credentials, including Visa, that, once fully deployed, will allow users to make transactions with virtual cards and much more.  

“At the moment, it’s still in the friends-and-family testing phase,” he said. “We want to ensure it's secure and the infrastructure is stable.” 

He added that people will be able to open bank accounts, retrieve educational certificates, and access a range of other services instantly. COOP is set to be the first financial institution to leverage the Fayda wallet, enabling new bank account openings through advanced biometric electronic eKYC verification. 

Yodahe Zemichael, Executive Director of the National ID Program, stated, “A key outcome of this national digital ID infrastructure is its synergistic relationship with financial innovation, exemplified by the Fayda Wallet.” 

According to Yodahe, who has led the program for the past three and a half years, more than 22.2 million digital IDs had been issued as of August 2025, with a target of reaching 63 million by July 2026. 

Speaking at the Summit, Yodahe highlighted the inclusive and sector-led approach to digital identity deployment across the country. He emphasized that the program’s policy ensures every adult, regardless of income level, residency, or access to traditional documentation, is eligible and encouraged to register. An approach targeting populations that have historically been excluded from formal financial and government services, such as daily laborers and domestic workers.  

“The initiative aims to address the documentation gap that previously left an estimated 40% of Ethiopia’s adult population without any official photo ID,” the director said.  

He foreshadowed a future where government services, from renewing a driver’s license to paying land leases, could be completed asynchronously from a mobile device, using digital signatures and public key infrastructure (PKI). 

“Presence-less services, verifiable credentials, and fully decentralized authentication will pave the way for smart contracts, frictionless lending, and broader financial access,” Yodahe indicated. 

Parallelly, the Fayda wallet is envisioned as a one-stop “credentials container,” holding everything from driver’s licenses and education certificates to virtual payment cards, all managed securely and verifiably on the user’s device. The Fayda ID has already become a mandatory prerequisite to access a broad range of public and financial services. It recently became a precondition for school registrations in the capital. 

Regarding concerns about data protection and privacy, Yodahe gave assurances that Fayda collects strictly essential personal data. Robust legal and technical safeguards regulate data sharing with third parties, ensuring that citizens have full control over their information unless a court order dictates otherwise, according to him.  

Yodahe disclosed that Ethiopia’s digital ID ecosystem had already processed more than 28 million eKYC verifications.  

“This capability provides banks, telecom operators, and fintech companies with reliable authentication mechanisms, reducing onboarding barriers and fraud risks,” he said.  

Held under the theme “From Invisible to Included: The Fintech Access Tour East Africa,” "Addis Ababa Mixer 25 | Road to Accra," is part of the Africa Fintech Summit’s East Africa Tour and focuses on digital identity as a fundamental enabler of access to financial services in Ethiopia and the broader region.