Cellulant Appoints Darren Makarem as CFO to Drive African Payments Expansion
African payments technology company Cellulant has named Darren Makarem as its new Chief Financial Officer (CFO), bolstering its executive bench as it pushes to deepen its position as the preferred payments partner for global and regional enterprises operating across the continent.
Makarem brings over 20 years of experience in digital finance and fintech, with a track record that spans institutional accounting, global platform finance, and digital assets.
His appointment comes as Cellulant scales off a milestone year. The company achieved profitability in 2024 and now processes more than 4.5 million transactions daily across its African payments infrastructure.
The hire is notable for what Makarem brings beyond the numbers. As former Global CFO at travel technology firm Agoda, he oversaw a payments network processing approximately USD 12 billion in annual transaction volume, navigating multi-currency settlement, conversion rate optimisation, and the operational demands of high-uptime payment infrastructure at scale.
“Darren doesn’t just understand the numbers; he understands the customer,” said Cellulant CEO Peter O’Toole. “His experience as a high-volume user of payment services at Agoda gives him a unique perspective on what businesses need to grow. He will leverage these insights to build a finance centre of excellence, ensuring our financial operations are as innovative, agile, and customer-centric as our products.”
Makarem is an ACA-qualified professional who began his career at EY in England before earning an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management. He has since held senior finance roles across complex regulatory environments, including serving as APAC and LATAM CFO at Binance and most recently as CEO of OnRamp, experience in digital assets and regulated business models that Cellulant says will be relevant as it explores new payment and settlement frameworks.
“What excites me about Cellulant is the quality of what has already been built, a deep payment network, strong enterprise partnerships, and a real focus on customer value,” said Makarem. “My priority is to ensure the business has the financial discipline, insight, and operational support to move fast, stay bold, and keep delivering.”
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