Paystack Gets Payment Service Operations Licence in Kenya

By Adedapo Adesanya

Nigerian unicorn, Paystack, has announced that it has received a Payment Service Provider Authorisation from the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK), which will allow it to provide payment services to businesses operating in the East African country.

In a statement received by Business Post, the company said – “We’re thrilled to announce that Paystack has received a Payment Service Provider Authorisation from the Central Bank of Kenya, which permits us to provide payment services to businesses operating in Kenya!”

It also announced the launch of Kenya Private Beta, which will make Paystack merchants in Kenya get settled in both Kenyan Shillings and USD and accept payments via several local and global payment channels, including M-Pesa, Card payments (Visa, Mastercard, American Express), and Apple Pay.

“We’ll work with an initial group of businesses to refine our platform in Kenya, implement feedback, and ensure that we build a fast, reliable, and truly delightful payment experience,” it stated.

Kenya will be the fourth country that it operates locally, after South Africa, Ghana, and Nigeria. The company beamed, “we’re thankful to receive the authorization required to operate in full compliance with regulations.”

This is coming more than a year after it expanded its operations to its third market, South Africa, in May 2021.

Founded in 2015 by Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi, Paystack helps businesses in Africa get paid by anyone, anywhere in the world. The company was actively present in Nigeria and Ghana before expanding to South Africa.

In 2018, Paystack raised an $8 million series A round led by Stripe. The funding was used for its Ghana expansion. Since expanding to Ghana, Paystack has grown and claims to power 50 per cent of all online payments in Nigeria with around 60,000 customers, including small businesses, larger corporates, fintech, educational institutions, and online betting companies.

In October 2020, the company was acquired by Stripe for $200 million for its African expansion.