USSD Gaming · Africa Mass Market
Sideways brilliance in USSD games.
Crabwalk helps licensed operators and telecom partners reach players on any handset through USSD—paired with the mobile-money rails people already use. No app install. No data plan required to start a session. Take it turnkey, or customize it to fit your existing platform—simply bring your licence.
Feature phones · USSD · Mobile money · ● Ready
USSD · M-PESA · MTN MOMO · AIRTEL MONEY · MULTI-MNO · MULTI-LANGUAGE
The opportunity
Mass-market Africa still runs on USSD.
960 million
users remain beyond app reach.
45%
of new handsets in Africa cannot run apps.
9%
of monthly income is what 1GB of data costs.
Zero
data cost to the user. USSD reaches every phone on every network.
Feature phones still account for a large share of handsets across Sub-Saharan Africa. Smartphone adoption is growing, but it is not universal—and many players will not install another app or keep a data balance just to place a bet. USSD remains a primary channel for airtime, banking, and mobile money across the region.
That creates a clear opening for gaming that meets people where they already are: dial a short code, follow a numbered menu, stake and settle on mobile money. Crabwalk is built for that reality—so operators can offer modern game catalogues without depending on smartphone-only distribution.
Crabwalk Gaming makes it simple to build on.
Why USSD
Built for constrained networks and real wallets.
01
Works without data
USSD runs on 2G-capable networks with no data plan. Sessions are short, structured, and predictable—suited to bandwidth-constrained markets and players who will not open a heavyweight app.
02
Mass device reach
Every handset that can dial a short code can reach the service. That includes feature phones and smartphones alike, aligning gaming distribution with how people already top up and pay.
03
Mobile-money native
Play sits next to the wallets players trust—such as M-Pesa, MTN MoMo, and Airtel Money—through operator integrations. The telco identity and mobile-money account relationship supports a clear, accountable payment path for licensed operators.
Game catalogue
A full book for USSD and beyond.
Crabwalk offers sport, casino, crash, instant win, and number games—configured per operator market and channel. Titles below are available on the platform; operators choose what to surface in each menu.
Sport
Sports betting and prediction products for jackpots and event play.
| Sport Basic | Single and match betting on sports events. |
| Sport Bet Builder | Multi-selection bets with flexible stakes and number of outcomes. |
| Sport Jackpot | Lucky betslip jackpots—styles such as MEGA multipliers, Favourites, and Underdogs—with clear stake options and potential win shown before confirm. |
| Virtuals Predictor | Sports prediction play: climb a leaderboard or chase progressive and must-win jackpots (e.g. Predictor League, Weekly Must Win, Weekly Progressive). |
Casino
Classic table and slots experiences adapted for operator menus.
| Blackjack | Classic card game against the house. |
| Slots | Three-reel slots with one, three, or five pay lines; risk styles from steady to bigger wins; optional jackpots; fair, auditable outcomes. |
Crash
Stake, watch the multiplier rise, and cash out before the crash. Higher multipliers mean higher risk.
| Bomber | Flip tiles and avoid bombs; difficulty levels available. |
| Aviator Copilot | Fly and collect multiplier; cash out before the plane crashes. Operators may brand this as Flight Risk or Avieta. |
| Rocket Reach | Launch and boost; cash out before fuel runs out. |
| Goal Rush | Penalty shootout—score and cash out in time. |
| Chicken Run | Dodge traffic and run; cash out before getting hit. |
| Treasure Hunter | Dig for gold and avoid the snake; limited digs with hot/cold hints. |
Instant win
Fast, simple games with clear odds—tuned for quick round-trips on USSD timeouts.
| Coin Flip | Heads or Tails—predict the flip of a coin. |
| Lucky Number | Guess Odd/Even or High/Low on a number from 1–100. |
| Rock Paper Scissors | Classic game against the house. |
| Rocket Dice | Predict Over, Under, or Exact on the dice roll. |
Number games
Draw-based number play for players who want pick-and-wait excitement.
| Keno | Pick from 1–80 (variants such as Keno 4, 6, 8, or 10). A draw selects 20 numbers on a short cycle; more matches mean a bigger win. |
How it works
From short code to live catalogue.
Operators configure the offer once. Players dial in and play on the channel that fits the market.
01 · CONNECT
Connect networks and wallets
Link MNO short codes and mobile-money adapters for the markets you serve. Align currency, country, and network settings so deposits and withdrawals follow local rules.
02 · CONFIGURE
Shape menus and content
Choose which games appear, in which language, and in which order. Menus and journeys adapt by channel and market so one platform can power many operator experiences.
03 · LAUNCH
Go live and report
Launch the USSD (and supported messaging channels where offered). Track activity by game category for commercial and compliance reporting, with tax settings where regulation requires it.
Deployment
Turnkey or customizable. Simply bring your licence.
Crabwalk is built to fit the operator, not the other way around. Launch a complete USSD gaming offer out of the box, or plug our games, wallet, and USSD layer into the platform you already run. You hold the licence and the player relationship—we supply the technology and the mass-market channel.
Option 01 · Turnkey
Launch-ready USSD operation
A complete, branded offer configured for your market: short code and MNO connections, USSD menu journeys, the full game catalogue, mobile-money deposits and withdrawals, player management, and operator reporting. Fastest route from licence to live players—no in-house build required.
- · Short code, MNO and mobile-money set-up
- · Preconfigured menus in your market languages
- · Full sport, casino, crash, instant win and keno catalogue
- · Reporting and operator controls from day one
Option 02 · Customizable
Fits the platform you already run
Keep your existing brand, player accounts, wallet, and back office—and add USSD reach on top. Integrate selected games or the whole catalogue through APIs, map menus to your own journeys, and route payments through the rails you already use. Adopt as much or as little of the stack as you need.
- · API integration with your existing platform
- · Your wallet, accounts and back office retained
- · Menus, journeys and content configured per market
- · Pick individual titles or the full catalogue
Market scorecard
USSD betting feasibility by market
Subscriber scale, USSD usage intensity, mobile ARPU, and the dominant mobile-money rails, scored 1–10 for USSD betting feasibility. Figures are public market context, not Crabwalk deployment claims.
| Country | Mobile subs | USSD usage | ARPU / month | Mobile-money rails | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kenya | 76.16m | Very high | — | M-Pesa, Airtel Money, T-Kash | 10/10 |
| Tanzania | 106.9m | Extremely high | ~$2.6 | M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa (Yas), Airtel Money, Halopesa | 9/10 |
| Nigeria | 179.64m | High | $2.10–3.02 | Paga, OPay, PalmPay, MoMo PSB, SmartCash, bank USSD | 8/10 |
| Uganda | ≈35m | Very high | ~$2–3 | MTN MoMo, Airtel Money | 8/10 |
| Mozambique | ≈25m | High | ~$1.8 | M-Pesa, e-Mola, mKesh | 7/10 |
| Zimbabwe | 15.68m | Very high | Variable | EcoCash, OneMoney, Telecash | 7/10 |
| Zambia | 23.2m | High | ~$2–3 | MTN MoMo, Airtel Money, Zamtel Kwacha | 7/10 |
| Cameroon | ≈24m | High | ~$3–4 | MTN MoMo, Orange Money | 7/10 |
| Mali | ≈25m | Very high | ~$2–3 | Orange Money, Moov Money | 7/10 |
| DRC | ≈55m | High | ~$2–3 | M-Pesa, Airtel Money, Orange Money | 6/10 |
Both routes assume you hold—or are securing—a valid gaming licence in the markets you serve. Crabwalk provides the platform and games; licensing, compliance, and the player relationship stay with the operator.
Platform
Operator controls. Mass-market reach.
Six capabilities partners ask for first—kept at a product level, not an engineering dump.
Multi-language by design
Localize menus and player-facing content for each market. English and French are supported examples; add languages as your markets require so the same catalogue reads natively on every short code.
Customizable menus and content
Configure journeys, menu trees, and content variants per channel, MNO, and market. Surface the games that fit the licence and the audience—without rebuilding the stack for every launch.
Low-cost platform
USSD-first delivery avoids app-store installs and smartphone-data barriers. You reach feature-phone and smartphone players through infrastructure they already use—an efficient path to mass-market distribution for licensed operators.
Multi-MNO short codes
Operate across mobile network operators with market-specific short codes and routing suited to each country's telecom landscape.
Mobile-money wallet adapters
Integrate with leading rails such as M-Pesa, MTN MoMo, and Airtel Money so stake and payout follow the wallets players already fund.
Operator reporting
Group bets and activity by game category—sport, casino, crash, instant win, number games—for commercial insight and compliance reporting. Tax handling is available where local rules require it.
Markets
Where USSD and mobile money already win.
Across East, West, and Central Africa, USSD usage for mobile money, airtime, and basic banking remains high—even as 4G expands. Markets with deep mobile-money penetration and established betting demand are natural fits for USSD gaming distribution.
Crabwalk is aimed at licensed operators and telecom partners evaluating those corridors. Country cards below summarize public-scale context only (subscriber scale, USSD usage level, example mobile-money rails). They are market context—not claims of live Crabwalk deployments or partnerships.
Kenya
Large mobile subscriber base; very high USSD usage for mobile money, airtime, and banking. Rails include M-Pesa, Airtel Money, and T-Kash.
Tanzania
Very large subscriber base; extremely high USSD usage for mobile money, bill pay, and top-ups. Rails include M-Pesa, Tigo Pesa (Yas), Airtel Money, and Halopesa.
Uganda
Very high USSD usage for mobile money, banking, and top-ups. Primary rails include MTN MoMo and Airtel Money.
Nigeria
Very large mobile market; high USSD usage for banking and airtime (even where app wallets grow). Multiple wallet and bank USSD rails in market.
Rwanda
Very high USSD usage for mobile money, utilities, banking, and top-ups. Rails include MTN MoMo and Airtel Money.
Zambia
High USSD usage for mobile money, utilities, and airtime. Rails include MTN MoMo, Airtel Money, and Zamtel Kwacha.
Additional markets with meaningful USSD and mobile-money activity include Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Cameroon, Mali, DRC, and Burundi—each with local rails and regulatory paths that licensed operators must navigate.
FAQ
Questions operators ask first.
What is USSD gaming?+
USSD gaming lets players open a session by dialing a short code, then navigate numbered menus to choose games, stake, and confirm—without installing an app or using mobile data for the session itself.
Which devices work?+
Any handset that can dial a USSD short code—including feature phones and smartphones. That is the point: distribution is not limited to app-store devices.
How does mobile money fit?+
Stakes and payouts connect through mobile-money integrations such as M-Pesa, MTN MoMo, and Airtel Money (by market). Players use wallets they already fund for airtime and payments.
What games can we offer?+
Sport (including jackpots and Virtuals Predictor), casino (Blackjack, Slots), crash titles (Bomber, Aviator Copilot and operator brands, Rocket Reach, Goal Rush, Chicken Run, Treasure Hunter), instant win (Coin Flip, Lucky Number, Rock Paper Scissors, Rocket Dice), and Keno. Operators choose which titles appear in each menu.
Can menus and content be customized?+
Yes. Menus, journeys, and content are configurable per channel, network, and market so the same platform can present different offers under different short codes and languages.
Is Crabwalk a turnkey solution or can it be customized?+
Both. Take the turnkey route and launch a complete USSD gaming offer—short code, menus, game catalogue, mobile-money payments, and reporting—configured for your market. Or take the customizable route and integrate the games, wallet, and USSD layer into your existing platform via APIs, keeping your own front end, player accounts, and back office. Either way you simply bring your licence; Crabwalk supplies the technology.
Do you support multiple languages?+
Yes. Player-facing content can be localized (for example English and French), so markets are not forced into a single language tree.
Why is this positioned as a low-cost platform?+
Because USSD reaches mass-market devices without requiring an app install or a data plan for the session. That reduces distribution friction compared with smartphone-only stacks. Specific commercial terms are shared in partner conversations—not published as fixed public price lists here.
How do we start a partnership conversation?+
Use Talk to us on this site. Share your company, markets of interest, and licence context. A Crabwalk commercial contact will follow up to discuss fit, configuration, and next steps.
Talk to us
Ready to put USSD to work?
Tell us about your markets and licence. We will show how Crabwalk's catalogue, menus, and mobile-money adapters fit your rollout.
Crabwalk Gaming · USSD First · Licensed Operators