Author: Insider Editor

OPay has grown from a digital payments service into a broader financial platform used by Nigerians for everyday transactions. For some people, OPay is simply an app on their phone. For others, it is the platform they turn to when they need to send money, pay an electricity bill, buy data, receive a business payment or handle an unexpected financial need. Over the years, those everyday transactions have become part of OPay’s story in Nigeria. It started with a simple transfer For Mrs Saliu Oluwabukola, her experience with OPay began in 2019 after she came across the platform on social…

Raenest has launched a new product that allows eligible users to earn up to 7% variable annual percentage yield (APY) on USDC and USDT balances directly through its app. The product, called Stablecoin Vault, adds a yield-earning feature to Raenest’s existing money-management services. The platform allows users to hold and manage both traditional currencies and stablecoins from a single account. Users can manage currencies including US dollars, pounds, euros and Nigerian naira alongside USDC and USDT, with the option to receive, hold, convert and spend their funds across supported currencies. “Stablecoins are becoming an important part of how people and…

LemFi has appointed economist and former public-sector adviser Dr Haydar Daudu as its Head of Regulatory Affairs and Policy for West Africa, as the financial technology company expands its cross-border services in the region. Daudu previously advised the Deputy Governor for Economic Policy at the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). He has also served as Senior Economist and Chief of Staff at the D-8 Organisation for Economic Cooperation. He holds a PhD in Economics from Nile University of Nigeria, a first-class degree in Economics from the University of Essex and an MSc in Development Economics and Policy from the University…

KCB Group is set to acquire a 22.23% stake in Kenyan payments company Pesapal, a transaction that would give the bank indirect control of Pesapal’s Tanzanian subsidiary, according to the country’s competition regulator. The disclosure by Tanzania’s Fair Competition Commission (FCC) provides the first public figure for a stake KCB has previously described only as a minority investment. The value of the transaction has not been disclosed, and the deal is still undergoing regulatory review. The FCC published the notice on August 21, saying it had begun assessing the proposed acquisition and was inviting comments from interested parties. The regulator…

Fintechs looking to operate in Kenya’s payments industry could soon need significantly more capital, under new rules proposed by the country’s central bank. The draft National Payment System Bill, 2026, sets minimum capital requirements ranging from KSh5 million ($38,610) for some payment services to KSh250 million ($1.93 million) for electronic money issuers. The proposed thresholds would vary depending on the type of licence a company holds. Payment initiation and account information service providers would face a KSh5 million requirement, while payment gateways would need KSh10 million. Money remittance providers would require KSh30 million, while merchant acquirers, electronic wallet providers, card…

Kenya is considering new payment rules that could require banks and payment providers to share customer data with licensed third parties, potentially opening the door to a broader open-banking market. The proposal is contained in the draft National Payment System Bill, 2026, developed by the National Treasury and the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK). The bill is intended to replace Kenya’s existing National Payment System Act and create a framework focused on interoperability, innovation, competition, consumer protection and data security. Under the draft, payment service providers would need to have systems capable of securely sharing customer data with third parties…

South African digital bank Bank Zero has reached break-even five years after opening to the public, marking a major milestone for the app-only lender as it shifts its focus towards scaling through partnerships. The bank recorded its first break-even month in August, with revenue covering its operating costs for the month. However, Bank Zero does not expect its earnings to become consistently profitable immediately, with results likely to fluctuate in the near term. The lender’s next phase of growth will centre on its alliance-banking model, which allows fintechs, retailers and digital platforms to use Bank Zero’s banking infrastructure while bringing…

As cyberattacks become more sophisticated across Africa, Nigerian cybersecurity startup Aeon is betting that organisations managing sensitive infrastructure need more than a collection of disconnected security tools. The startup has raised $1 million in a pre-seed funding round led by defence-tech company Terra Industries, with Resilience 17, the venture fund founded by Flutterwave co-founder and CEO Olugbenga Agboola, Kaleo, DFS Labs, Ajim Capital, and Seedstars also participating. Aeon plans to use the capital to develop its cybersecurity products, strengthen business development, and convert existing pilots with financial services and cloud infrastructure companies into paying deployments. The funding arrives against a…

South Africa has more organisations lending to small businesses than it did seven years ago. Yet billions of rand in potential business funding remain out of reach for the companies that need it most. The country’s micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) are estimated to face a R350 billion ($21.5 billion) financing gap, even as the number of SME funders has grown from 148 in 2018 to more than 300 in 2025, according to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). The numbers point to a problem that is not simply about a shortage of lenders or capital. For…

Kenyan fintech Payd is preparing to resume services after foreign exchange losses left the company short of the funds needed to meet some customer balances. The payments startup plans to restart its services on Friday, September 18, following months of disruption that began around May. The company has also overhauled its treasury system to address the currency mismatches that contributed to the problem. Founded in 2023 by Benaiah Wepundi, Payd helps freelancers, contractors, and businesses receive international payments and convert them into local currencies. As of February, the company said it had about 30,000 users across Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa,…