PawaPay
PawaPay is a B2B payments infrastructure provider offering a single API that connects global enterprises to mobile money operators across 20 African markets, enabling deposits, payouts, and remittances for 650+ million wallets. It serves platforms in ride-hailing, fintech, trading, gaming, and crypto.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersLondon, United Kingdom
- Headcount101–250
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What PawaPay does
PawaPay is a B2B payments infrastructure provider that enables global enterprises and platforms to integrate African mobile money payments through a single unified API. Founded in 2021 as a spinout from a parent technology company and headquartered in Milton Keynes, UK, the company targets businesses that need to collect payments from, or send payouts to, mobile money wallets across the African continent. Its customer base spans ride-hailing (Bolt), mobility (Yango), remittances (LemFi), international development (GiveDirectly), online trading (Deriv), gaming (betPawa), and cryptocurrency (Yellow Card).
The company's core product is a direct-to-wallet API architecture that connects to over 30 mobile money operators — including M-Pesa, MTN Mobile Money, Wave, Airtel, Orange Money, and others — across 20 African markets spanning Benin, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, DRC, Senegal, and others. This integration footprint covers an estimated 85% of all mobile money in Africa and provides access to 650+ million mobile money wallets. The platform supports deposits (collections), payouts (disbursements), cross-border remittances, and treasury management with multi-currency settlement options. As of 2025, the platform has processed 2.6+ billion transactions with 100% uptime and zero chargebacks, settling approximately €10 billion in cumulative payment volume at a current run-rate of 5 million transactions per day.
PawaPay operates a transaction-based revenue model, charging per-transaction fees with public pricing available through its website. The go-to-market combines a self-serve product-led motion (sandbox environment, pre-built payment page, three-step onboarding) with enterprise field sales for regulated industries and large-scale deployments. The company is venture-backed, having raised a single $9 million seed round in August 2021 co-led by MSA Capital and 88mph, with participation from Vunani Capital, Kepple Ventures, and Zagadat Capital. As of 2025, PawaPay has expanded its offering into multi-rail payment orchestration covering bank transfers, digital wallets, and stablecoins.
PawaPay firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- PawaPay
- Legal name
- PawaPay UK Limited
- Website
- https://pawapay.co.uk
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 101–250 employees
- Short description
- PawaPay is a B2B payments infrastructure provider offering a single API that connects global enterprises to mobile money operators across 20 African markets, enabling deposits, payouts, and remittances for 650+ million wallets. It serves platforms in ride-hailing, fintech, trading, gaming, and crypto.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
PawaPay industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Payment Infrastructure / Mobile Money API
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (522320)
- SIC
- Finance Services (6199)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Carrier Billing & Telco Mobile Money (FSAMAEAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- International Money Transfer Operators (MTOs) (FSAMAIAE), Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & IBAN Services (FSAMAIAG), Consumer P2P International Remittances (FSAGAKAA), P2P Transfers & Remittances Platforms (BPAMAFAE)
Keywords
Where PawaPay is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- London
- HQ country
- United Kingdom
- HQ region
- Europe
Offices1 record
Markets served
PawaPay business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Operations, Marketing or Sales
Revenue model
- Transaction Processing Fees: PawaPay charges fees per transaction processed through its platform. The company operates a transaction-based revenue model where businesses pay for each mobile money deposit, payout, and remittance processed. Pricing page exists at /fees indicating transparent per-transaction pricing.
- Settlement Services: Revenue generated from currency conversion and settlement services, including FX management when settling between local African currencies and global currencies.
- Treasury Management Services: Revenue from treasury management services including liquidity orchestration and multi-currency treasury operations for enterprise clients.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Transaction-based pricing with per-transaction fees |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels6 records
PawaPay product offering
Product offeringCore offering
PawaPay provides a single unified payments API and dashboard that lets businesses collect mobile money payments, send payouts, and execute cross-border remittances across 20 African markets. The platform connects directly to 30+ mobile money operators (including M-Pesa, MTN, and Wave) covering approximately 85% of all mobile money in Africa, and is supplemented by Treasury Management for multi-currency settlement and a PawaPay Dashboard for transaction management and reconciliation.
Product overview
PawaPay is a B2B payments infrastructure platform offering a unified API that connects businesses to mobile money operators across 20+ African markets. The core offering consists of the Payments API for collecting and sending mobile money transactions, complemented by a Dashboard for transaction management, Treasury Management for multi-currency settlement options, and Remittances for cross-border payouts. The platform provides direct-to-wallet connectivity to major mobile money operators including M-Pesa, MTN, and Wave, enabling businesses to access over 650 million mobile money wallets with zero chargebacks. The architecture supports enterprise-grade reliability with 100% uptime and handles payment processing, settlement, FX, and reconciliation for global platforms operating at scale.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- PawaPay Payments API
Quantifiable outcome
- 2.6+ billion transactions processed with zero chargebacks
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use PawaPay
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
PawaPay technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration12 records
Feature6 records
PawaPay partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- DerivcorePawaPay partnered with online trading platform Deriv to enable mobile money deposits across eight African markets. The partnership handles payment processing, settlement, FX, and reconciliation for Deriv's African operations. Since launch, Deriv has recorded increased mobile money deposits, fewer failed transactions, and more predictable settlements. The partnership is designed to expand into additional markets over time.
- M-PesacoreMajor mobile money operator connected through PawaPay's direct-to-wallet architecture. M-Pesa is one of the leading mobile money operators in Africa, particularly strong in Kenya.
- MTNcoreMajor African telecom operator with mobile money services (MTN Mobile Money) integrated through PawaPay's platform across multiple markets.
- WavecoreMobile money operator integrated through PawaPay's direct-to-wallet architecture, providing coverage in West African markets including Senegal and Côte d'Ivoire.
- Mobile Money Operators (30+)corePawaPay connects to over 30 mobile money operators across 20 African markets including Airtel Money, Orange Money, Telcel Cash, and others. Rated 9-9.5/10 by operators on support, trustworthiness, and relationship quality.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
PawaPay competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Onafriq (formerly MFS Africa): Pan-African mobile money aggregator connecting 500+ mobile money operators across 40+ countries. Direct competitor offering a similar hub-and-spoke API model for cross-border payments and remittances across African mobile money rails.
- Flutterwave: Pan-African payments infrastructure provider offering card, bank, and mobile money acceptance via unified APIs. Competes head-on with PawaPay for enterprise merchants needing multi-rail payment processing across African markets.
- Cellulant: Pan-African payments aggregator operating the Tingg platform, providing a single API for mobile money, bank, and card payments across 35+ countries. Most direct competitor in the mobile money aggregation space.
- Thunes: Cross-border payments network connecting 130+ countries with deep mobile money wallet reach in Africa. Competes with PawaPay on cross-border payouts and remittances into African mobile wallets.
- TerraPay: Cross-border payments network enabling real-time payments to mobile wallets across emerging markets. Direct competitor in African mobile money cross-border use cases with comparable enterprise API offerings.
- DPO Group: African payment service provider (now part of Network International) offering multi-currency payment processing across mobile money, card, and bank. Competes with PawaPay for enterprise payment gateway customers.
Broad incumbents
- Interswitch: Largest African payments incumbent operating Verve (card scheme), Quickteller, and payment gateway services. Broader than PawaPay but overlaps on mobile money aggregation and enterprise merchant payment processing across Nigeria and beyond.
- Stripe: Global payments incumbent progressively expanding into African markets via acquisitions (Paystack) and direct entry. A long-term competitive threat if it bundles mobile money aggregation into its global Connect/payments stack for African-bound merchants.
Emerging players
- Chipper Cash: African cross-border payments app combining mobile money and crypto on/off-ramps. Overlaps with PawaPay on cross-border payouts and mobile money integration but is more consumer-facing.
Regional players
- Mukuru: Southern African remittance and mobile money operator with deep presence in Zimbabwe, South Africa, and Mozambique. Adjacent competitor in remittances-to-mobile-money use cases overlapping with PawaPay's payouts business.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights6 records
Customer concentration
PawaPay social profiles
Digital presencePawaPay financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
PawaPay leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles3 records
PawaPay funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
PawaPay M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about PawaPay
What does PawaPay do?
PawaPay provides a single unified payments API and dashboard that lets businesses collect mobile money payments, send payouts, and execute cross-border remittances across 20 African markets. The platform connects directly to 30+ mobile money operators (including M-Pesa, MTN, and Wave) covering approximately 85% of all mobile money in Africa, and is supplemented by Treasury Management for multi-currency settlement and a PawaPay Dashboard for transaction management and reconciliation.
Is PawaPay a public or private company?
PawaPay is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was PawaPay founded?
PawaPay was founded in 2021. It employs 101 to 250 people.
Where is PawaPay based?
PawaPay is headquartered in London, United Kingdom, in the Europe region.
How does PawaPay make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Transaction Processing Fees are the primary driver. The others are settlement Services and treasury Management Services.
Who are PawaPay's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Onafriq (formerly MFS Africa), Flutterwave, Cellulant, Thunes, TerraPay and DPO Group. Broad incumbents are Interswitch and Stripe. Chipper Cash is listed as an emerging player. Mukuru is listed as a regional player.
Does PawaPay have an API?
Yes. PawaPay offers a unified payments API that enables businesses to integrate mobile money payments across 20 African markets through a single integration. The API supports deposits (collecting payments), payouts (sending payments), and remittances. Features include sandbox environment for testing, full API reference documentation, and integration into digital payment flows. Developer documentation is at docs.pawapay.io.
What industry is PawaPay in?
PawaPay's product category is Payment Infrastructure / Mobile Money API. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSAMAEAD, Carrier Billing & Telco Mobile Money, with a secondary code of FSAMAIAE, International Money Transfer Operators (MTOs). Its NAICS code is 522320 and its SIC code is 6199.