Kenya’s online payment firm consolidates Africa business under one name

The online platform serves over 25,000 merchants. FILE PHOTO | NMG

What you need to know:

  • Direct Pay Online has changed the name of its operations in southern Africa from PayGate to DPO PayGate.
  • The firm expects to effectively demonstrate its reach and dominance in the payments space.

Nairobi-based online payment service provider Direct Pay Online (DPO) has consolidated its system across 15 African countries under a new brand name, DPO Group.

Chief executive Eran Feinstein Wednesday, said with one brand across the continent, the firm will effectively demonstrate its reach and dominance in the payments space.

“We feel that brand uniformity is a strength that we are yet to explore to its full capacity,” said Mr Feinsteint.

DPO has changed the name of its operations in southern Africa from PayGate to DPO PayGate.

This follows its acquisition of PayGate South Africa in 2016 and later VCS South Africa, VCS Namibia, VCS Botswana, and PayThru South Africa. Another major acquisition was Setcom (Pty) Ltd, which operated SID instant EFT, an instant electronic funds transfer (EFT) solution in South Africa.

All the firms have been consolidated into one company, DPO PayGate.

The online platform serves over 25,000 merchants including more than 54 airlines, hotels, restaurants, travel agents, tour operators and other investors in the e-commerce sector.

In 2017, it received Sh519 million ($5 million) funding from a private equity (PE) firm Apis Partners.

This was the second time the PE firm was investing in DPO after injecting Sh1 billion (Sh10 million) in 2016.

DPO, which was established in 2006, currently has offices in Uganda, Tanzania, Zanzibar, Zambia, Rwanda, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Malawi, Mauritius, Ghana and Nigeria.

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