Banking
Payday Raises $3m to Expand Footprints in UK, Canada
By Adedapo Adesanya
Payday, a pan-African neo-bank, has announced a $3 million Seed round led by Moniepoint Inc (formerly TeamApt) to continue boosting financial presence across Western markets, especially the United Kingdom and Canada.
The new round saw contributions from HoaQ, DFS Lab’s Stellar Africa Fund, Ingressive Capital Fund II and angel investors participating in the round. The angel investors who participated in Payday’s seed round are Mr Dare Okoudjou, Founder and CEO of MFS Africa and Mr Tola Onayemi, CEO of Norebase.
In addition, existing investors, Techstars, Angels Touch, Ingressive Capital & Now Venture Partners, made follow-on investments in this round.
This new round of funding brings Payday’s total investment to $5.1 million, following the over $2 million pre-seed round closed in 2021.
The new capital raised is for licensing to get their UK entity and operations off the ground while expanding to Canada. The company will also grow its talent base by 40 per cent to 50 employees, many of whom will come into its customer success department.
Also, the round sees two new talents join its co-founding team, Mr Elijah Kingson, Payday’s CPO and Mrs Yvonne Obike, Payday’s COO. The former previously led product design for subscription products at Revolut, the London-based neo-bank with over 25 million customers, while Mrs Obike drove MSME growth at Nigeria’s Bank of Industry, the country’s oldest and most significant development institution.
In January, it launched version three of its product, Payday 3.0, signalling an evolution into a super app with features such as local bill payments, virtual naira cards, and payment links.
In February 2023, Payday became a payment partner for Starlink, operated by SpaceX. Thus, it provides a payment method for its users in Nigeria and Rwanda, where Starlink can be purchased on the continent.
Payday claims it has processed an average of 40,000 transactions per day worth millions of dollars and adds 100,000 users monthly, bringing its base to 330,000 users.
Speaking on the new round, Mr Favour Ori, CEO and Founder of Payday, said, “This investment represents a significant milestone for our company, and we are grateful for the trust and commitment shown by our existing and new investors.
“We’re thrilled that this round of funding will lay the foundation for the continued growth of our platform as we expand our services to a wider audience.
“Our passion for empowering individuals and businesses with convenient and secure payment solutions is tangible. This funding will allow us to do so even more.”
Commenting on Moniepoint’s first-time investment in the company, CEO Tosin Eniolorunda says, “At Moniepoint, we’re excited about the unique things Favour and the team are doing with Payday. Personally, I connect deeply with his drive, technical depth, and desire to execute. The urge to encourage that fire inspired us to want to be a part of this.
“More important is the alignment in our goal to provide financial happiness by addressing key payment pain points—Moniepoint with merchants and Payday with individuals. We see a potential to leverage their infrastructure further to deepen our suite of financial services for merchants, and we’re looking forward to all that’s to come”.
Mrs Maya Horgan Famodou, Founder and MD at Ingressive Capital, said, “Favour is one of the savviest entrepreneurs I have met. He knows how to assess, execute, and pivot exactly when necessary. Hence why Payday has seen such explosive growth. This is certainly a gem in our portfolio. I’d bet on Favour and Payday again any day, both to realise the transformational value and also to make us proud with an exit the ecosystem will reference for years to come”.
Mr Sunil Sharma, Managing Director at Techstars Toronto, stated, “A word that best describes Favour Ori is relentless,” says Sunil Sharma, Managing Director of Techstars Toronto and one of the earliest investors in Payday. I was struck by his personal story, which took him from Nigeria to the US for his computer science degree and some valuable early work experience, then to Rwanda to establish a team, then to the UK and back to the US in pursuit of growth. Favour is always in search of opportunity, and nothing can get in his way.”
Payday was launched by Mr Ori in June 2021 from Rwanda to facilitate global payments from and to Africa, with a widespread use case for remote African workers to receive payments from their employers and spend anywhere in the world. Its incorporation in Rwanda and admission into Techstars Toronto accelerator made it the first time the latter admitted a Rwandan startup into its three-month accelerator programme.
The fintech startup allows those on the continent and in the diaspora to send and receive money in 23 currencies, including USD, GBP, and EUR, from over 130 countries. Thus, Africans who work remotely can receive their money in foreign currency and withdraw in the currency of their choice using virtual Mastercard and Visa cards. Alongside Rwanda, Payday is operational in Nigeria and, more recently, the United Kingdom.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The chief executive of ThetaRay, a fintech software and big data analytics company, Mr Brad Levy, says the recent directive by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) requiring financial institutions to deploy automated anti-money laundering (AML) systems is a strategic leap towards building a modern financial system optimised for digital trade.
The central bank issued a circular on March 10 requiring banks, mobile money operators and other regulated institutions to deploy automated AML solutions within 18 to 24 months. The move signals a shift by the regulator to tighten oversight and reduce financial crime risks in Nigeria’s banking system, as digital transactions continue to grow.
Mr Levy, whose ThetaRay works with financial institutions and fintechs across Africa, including in Nigeria, to implement AI-powered AML transaction monitoring solutions capable of detecting complex financial crime patterns in real time, noted that Nigeria is applying revolutionary methods in financial regulation—skipping older, manual compliance systems and going straight to advanced, AI-driven ones.
“The CBN’s mandate is Nigeria’s ‘mobile phone’ moment for financial integrity. Just as Africa bypassed landlines for mobile and the U.S. lagged on chip-and-pin tech, Nigeria is now leapfrogging the failing, manual ‘landline’ era of compliance. By mandating AI, Nigeria is skipping decades of Western technical debt to build a 21st-century infrastructure of trust that moves at the speed of modern trade,” he told Business Post.
Automation and AI in AML have shifted from a competitive advantage to a regulatory requirement, and the new CBN mandate will help Nigerian banks and fintechs in several areas, including achieving transparency, as transactions are continuously monitored and recorded in real time. This allows for the immediate detection of irregularities such as fraud or money laundering, significantly reducing the window for illicit activities to go unnoticed.
The new rules could drive significant investment in compliance technology, as institutions move away from manual processes that are slower and more prone to errors.
The requirements cover key areas such as transaction monitoring, customer due diligence, risk profiling, case management and regulatory reporting, all of which must now be automated.
The CBN’s directive comes amid intensifying global regulatory pressure on financial institutions to strengthen AML controls, particularly within rapidly expanding digital economies. For Nigeria, these new requirements are poised to significantly transform how banks approach compliance while also opening up new opportunities for startups to deliver specialised compliance and regulatory technology solutions.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
On Monday, March 30, 2026, Fidelity Bank Plc will host a Gele Masterclass to help women build practical, income-generating skills, strengthen professional visibility, and accelerate career growth.
This event will be the second part of a series of masterclasses and support initiatives planned for March 2026 in commemoration of International Women’s Day under the theme Give to Gain.
On March 18, 2026, the lender, through its women-focused proposition, HerFidelity, hosted a masterclass on communication and presentation.
The session offered practical guidance on audience engagement, event moderation, confidence-building, and personal branding, with a strong focus on women looking to improve their public speaking and professional presence.
HerFidelity is positioning the session as a celebration of cultural expression and a marketable skill women can turn into a source of income.
In addition to the masterclasses, the bank will provide professional headshot sessions to help participants update their personal and professional profiles.
“At Fidelity Bank, we believe that empowering women economically creates an impact that extends beyond the individual. It strengthens families, grows businesses, and uplifts communities. That is why we have designed an elaborate plan to upskill women throughout this month.
“We want women to leave these sessions with practical tools they can apply immediately, whether that is speaking confidently in public, building a stronger personal brand, or learning a skill that can generate income,” the Divisional Head of Small and Medium-scale Enterprises Banking at Fidelity Bank, Ms Ugochi Osinigwe, said.
Earlier this month, the bank reaffirmed its commitment to women’s economic empowerment with the signing of strategic MoUs with partner organisations at the launch of its Give Her Power initiative on March 5, 2026.
The collaborations, anchored on the bank’s HerFidelity Apprenticeship Programme, are designed to expand access to vocational training, business support, and sustainable enterprise opportunities for women across multiple sectors.
As part of the initiative, Fidelity Bank is distributing 1,000 sewing and grinding machines to empower women-led microbusinesses across Nigeria.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A partnership aimed to unlock diaspora capital for Nigeria’s growth has been deepened by the United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc and the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM).
The chief executive of UBA, Mr Oliver Alawuba, underscored the diaspora’s critical role as a powerful economic force and a generation of builders shaping new narratives for the continent.
He also reiterated the financial institution’s readiness to leverage its global network and innovative financial solutions to support diaspora engagement, urging Nigerians abroad to tap into opportunities within Africa’s economic landscape.
“You are not limited here; you have opportunities on the continent, and we want you to make good use of them. That is where banking, and we at UBA, become the connecting point that you need to access the opportunities back home.
“Whether you like it or not, the returns are high in Africa, and we are here to help you navigate that space,” the UBA chief said on Monday when he hosted key representatives of NiDCOM led by its chairman, Mrs Abike Dabiri, at the bank’s office in the United Kingdom.
UBA recently launched a Diaspora Banking platform to provide a seamless, integrated platform for Africans in the diaspora to bank, invest, and manage their financial obligations back home, thus connecting global Africans with investment and wealth opportunities.
The lender introduced the platform, with leading ecosystem partners representing a major step in redefining diaspora banking beyond remittances toward structured wealth creation and long-term investment.
“With UBA, you have a financial partner that is with you, that understands what you are going through, and that can support you to make sure you realise your aspirations, both here and in the country,” Mr Alawuba noted.
In her remarks, Mrs Dabiri-Erewa praised UBA for being a trusted financial partner over the years, especially with the recent launch of its diaspora platform.
“Many of you here are the real game-changers. “For years, it has been wonderful engaging Nigerians all over the world. When I started, it felt like we only heard the bad stories, not the good ones. What we have tried to do internationally is to tell and celebrate the good stories. We have Nigerians doing well all over the world, and they are in this room. We must continue to celebrate you,” she stated.
While remarking that the meeting demonstrates a significant step in aligning public and private sector efforts to deepen diaspora inclusion and accelerate Nigeria’s development agenda, she pledged closer collaboration in driving policies and initiatives that encourage Nigerians abroad to actively participate in the country’s economic growth.
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