US-based payments company Stripe is in the final stages of acquiring Nigerian-based startup Paystack for a deal worth $200 million. Like Stripe, Paystack provides a quick way to integrate payments services into an online or offline transaction through an API.
Founded in 2015 by Shola Akinlade and Ezra Olubi (in the featured image), Paystack has been solving the challenge of online payment transactions in Nigeria. With over 60,000 customers in the country and in Ghana, it is likely that the startup will continue operating independently as the terms of the acquisition are not yet disclosed.
According to Techcrunch, the deal is evidence of how Stripe is making strides in regards to geographic expansion, having added 17 more countries to its platform in the last 18 months. It is also an indicator of the company leaning on emerging markets of Africa for its own growth.
The firm raised $600m earlier this year with the aim to expand to other markets. It is worth noting that over the years, Stripe has made investments into startups building technology or businesses in areas where it is yet to move.
This is not the first time an African payments startup is acquired by a global entity.
Close to a year ago, Visa paid in two hundred million US dollars for a 20 per-cent stake in Interswitch, to become a strong investor in the Nigerian-based startup that boasts of several point-of-sale terminals, online consumer payment platforms and its own card, Verve.
Also this past August, cross-border payments company WorldRemit announced it had agreed to acquire Sendwave.
