‘We Issued Over 3 Million Cards Over a 9-Month Period’ – A Chat with CEO, Union54

BitKE · 2026-03-05T03:58:28+00:00

Perseus Mlambo, Co-Founder of Union54, discusses the launch of ChitChat, a social commerce platform enabling encrypted transactions and instant USD payments across Africa, facilitated by a partnership with MasterCard for global card issuance.

BitKE

2026-03-05 03:58:28

Abstract generation in progress

Perseus Mlambo is one of the Co-Founders of Union54, the company behind the popular ChitChat product in Zambia.

Union54 recently launched ChitChat, a social commerce platform that enables users across Africa to chat with each other over an encrypted platform.

Spaking about his experience at Union54, prior to launching ChitChat, Mlambo said:

“At Union54, over a 9-month period, we issued over 3 million cards from quite a number of countries and this really enabled people to transact on the internet,” said Mlambo while speaking to BitKE.

ChitChat recently partnered with MasterCard to enable the issuing of these cards wherever MasterCard is accepted globally.

ChitChat enables users to send instantaneous USD payments to friends and family within chat conversations. Funds are transferred to and from user wallets, with in-app conversion.

BitKE got to sit down for an exclusive chat with Mlambo to discuss the origins of the solution and what problems it is solving for people in Southern Africa and beyond.

In this discussion, you will get to learn:

01:10 – The Journey into Fintech
02:40 – About ChitChat
07:08 – About MasterCard Collaboration
12:15 – Financial Inclusion
13:30 – Features to be Expected
16:08 – User Engagement & Community Building
18:28 – Regulatory Challenges
22:43 – Fintech Framework
23:30 – The Future of Union54

About Union54

Union54 has developed a number of tools to propel African commerce forward. Our customers are financial technology companies across Africa.

Together with our customers, we’ve issued millions of debit cards to African consumers from almost every country on the continent.

Those cards have gone on to be used for hundreds of millions of dollars across different merchants from various industries and locations. In the process, we’ve helped our fintech customers earn revenue in the millions of dollars. For more information, visit www.union54.com.

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