This archive report was first published on 30 July 2019.
July 30, 2019 - DPO Group, a Nairobi-headquartered African payment service provider, has announced its acquisition of PayFast, one of the largest payment processors in South Africa. The deal, which was executed through a mix of shares and cash, will see the PayFast management team remain key shareholders in DPO Group.
With the acquisition, DPO Group will provide services to over 100,000 merchants across 18 African markets. PayFast has the broadest range of shopping cart integrations in Africa and its Instant EFT service provides consumers with a secure alternative for making online payments.
“PayFast is a natural fit for DPO Group and this deal strategically follows our acquisitions of PayGate, VCS, Paythru and SiD since 2016,” said Offer Gat, Chairman and co-founder of DPO Group. “This deal, which we believe is the largest acquisition by a PSP in Africa, reinforces our position as a leading PSP on the continent and is an important step forward in our strategic growth across Africa.”
According to Eran Feinstein, CEO and co-founder of DPO Group, the integration of PayFast will increase the range of payment options available to DPO’s business customers, while providing a Pan-African solution to PayFast’s existing customer base. “PayFast’s deep experience of payment processing and facilitation in South Africa complements and expands the services we can offer our business customers via the most diversified and robust suite of online payments options available in Africa,” he added.
PayFast, founded in 2007, uses a facilitator model to process payments, providing a turn-key solution together with its partner banks. The integration of PayFast into DPO’s services will enable merchants and, in turn, individual consumers to carry out transactions across 18 countries in Africa from a single platform.
Jonathan Smit, Managing Director and co-founder of PayFast, said, “Integrating our processing and facilitation capability with the range of online payment services offered by DPO and its huge geographical reach across 18 countries in Africa is an extremely exciting opportunity for both companies.”
