Onafriq
Onafriq is a pan-African digital payments gateway connecting 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ payment corridors across 43 African markets via a single API. It serves MNOs, banks, MTOs, fintechs, and global enterprises with collections, disbursements, card issuance, agent banking, and treasury services.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2010
- HeadquartersGauteng, South Africa
- Headcount501–1,000
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingSoftware
What Onafriq does
Onafriq is a pan-African digital payments gateway headquartered in London and incorporated in Mauritius, operating a network-of-networks platform that connects 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and more than 2,000 cross-border payment corridors across 43 African markets through a single RESTful API. Founded in 2010 (originally as MFS Africa, rebranded in 2021), the company offers five core service lines — Collections, Disbursements, Card Issuance (powered by its FASTBIN-certified platform), Agent Banking (via the 460,000+ Baxi super-agent network in Nigeria), and Treasury Services — supplemented by features including Smart Corridors for optimised routing, Stablecoin Settlement, Visa Pay, and Card-to-Wallet transfers. Technology is built around a cloud-native Payments-as-a-Service architecture with pre-existing card scheme certifications (VISA, Verve, Mastercard), ISO 27001, PCI DSS, SOC2 Type 2, and CMMI Level 3 compliance, anchored by 16 payment licences across Mauritius, Ghana, Nigeria, Tanzania, Rwanda, Uganda, DRC, and the UK.
Onafriq generates revenue primarily through transaction fees on cross-border and domestic digital payments processed across its network, supplemented by API access and integration services on a subscription basis, card issuance and processing fees, and agency banking transaction fees from the Baxi network. The go-to-market is API-first and enterprise-led, targeting MNOs, banks, money transfer organisations, fintechs, global enterprises, and government/development organisations through direct enterprise sales complemented by developer self-service onboarding. Customer relationships span tier-one partners including Visa, PayPal/Xoom, Ecobank, WorldRemit, MTN, Airtel, M-Pesa, Spotify, and emerging crypto platforms (VALR, Conduit). Strategic expansion is being driven by acquisitions (Beyonic, Baxi, GTP, Sochitel), regulatory-backed pilots with PAPSS, stablecoin integration with Conduit, and the Yuno orchestration partnership extending reach to global merchants.
Onafriq firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Onafriq
- Legal name
- Onafriq
- Website
- https://onafriq.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2010
- Headcount range
- 501–1,000 employees
- Short description
- Onafriq is a pan-African digital payments gateway connecting 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ payment corridors across 43 African markets via a single API. It serves MNOs, banks, MTOs, fintechs, and global enterprises with collections, disbursements, card issuance, agent banking, and treasury services.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Onafriq industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Cross-Border Payments Infrastructure
- NAICS
- Financial Transactions Processing, Reserve, and Clearinghouse Activities (52232)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Cross-Border & FX Payments Platforms (BPAMAFAK)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Cross-Border B2B2C Payouts (Mass Payouts, Gig/Creator, Marketplace) (FSAGAKAC), Embedded Payments (Pay-ins, Pay-outs, Wallets) (FSAGALAB), Risk, Compliance & Controls for Embedded Finance (KYB/KYC/AML, Fraud, Disputes) (FSAGALAK), Multi-Currency Accounts, Wallets & IBAN Services (FSAMAIAG)
Keywords
Where Onafriq is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Gauteng
- HQ country
- South Africa
- HQ region
- Africa
Offices13 records
Markets served
Onafriq business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Supply Chain, Others
Revenue model
- Payment Processing & Transaction Fees: Revenue generated from processing cross-border and domestic digital payments across the network. Partners pay for access to mobile wallets, bank accounts, and payment corridors through a single integration.
- API Access & Integration Services: Revenue from providing API access to the payment network, including sandbox testing, technical support, and integration assistance.
- Card Issuance & Processing: Revenue from card issuing and processing services through FASTBIN certification, supporting physical and virtual prepaid cards across VISA, Verve, and Mastercard schemes.
- Agent Banking (Baxi): Revenue from agency banking services including cash-in/cash-out transactions, bill payments, and value-added services through the Baxi agent network in Nigeria.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Transaction based/ take rate | Pay-as-you-go | Enterprise pricing with single integration access |
| Other | Pay-as-you-go | Single currency settlement option |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Onafriq product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Onafriq operates a pan-African digital payments network that connects 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ cross-border payment corridors across 40+ African markets through a single API integration. Its core service lines are Collections, Disbursements, Card Issuance (via FASTBIN), Agent Banking (via Baxi network), and Treasury Services, providing interoperability between mobile money operators, banks, money transfer organizations, and enterprises.
Product overview
Onafriq operates as a pan-African digital payments gateway and 'network of networks' platform. The core offering consists of Collections, Disbursements, Card Issuance (via FASTBIN), Agent Banking (Baxi), and Treasury Services, all accessible through a single API integration. The platform connects 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ cross-border payment corridors across 40+ African markets. Supporting features include Smart Corridors for optimized routing, Stablecoin Settlement for USDC-based treasury management, Visa Pay for card-mobile interoperability, and Card-to-Wallet Transfers for Ghana. Acquired capabilities include Baxi (Nigeria agent network), Beyonic (domestic payments/SME focus), Global Technology Partners (card connectivity), and Sochitel (airtime top-up).
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Collections Payment collection service allowing businesses to accept payments through cards, cash, and mobile wallets via a single integration on the Onafriq network. Designed for enterprises seeking pan-African payment acceptance.
- Disbursements Fast and secure bulk disbursement service with single integration and real-time transaction capabilities, supporting payouts to mobile wallets, bank accounts, and offline agents across Onafriq's network.
- Card Issuance and Processing Physical and virtual prepaid card issuing and processing service with VISA, Verve, and Mastercard certifications, featuring FASTBIN pre-existing BIN sponsorship for faster time-to-market and scale at launch.
- Agent Banking (Baxi) Nigeria-based super-agent network with 460,000+ agents providing agency banking services including cash withdrawal, money transfer, bill payments, airtime vending, and data subscription across all 36 Nigerian states.
- Treasury Services Multi-currency treasury management service providing access to multiple currencies across Africa with single currency settlement, competitive FX rates, and float continuity, reducing the need for a large correspondent banking network.
- Onafriq Network Platform Pan-African digital payments network connecting 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ cross-border payment corridors across 40+ African markets through a single API integration.
- FASTBIN Pre-existing card scheme certification and BIN sponsorship platform enabling faster time-to-market for prepaid card programs across Africa with support for VISA, Verve, and Mastercard schemes.
Quantifiable outcome
- 99.99% uptime for card processing
- +3 more outcomes
Companies that use Onafriq
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments7 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
Onafriq technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration14 records
AI capability2 records
Feature4 records
Onafriq partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
18 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- YunocoreStrategic partnership integrating Onafriq's Pan-African payment network into Yuno's orchestration platform. Enables Yuno's global merchants to access 43 African markets, 1B mobile wallets, 500M bank accounts, and 2,000+ payment corridors through single API. Services live in Nigeria, Egypt, Ghana, Kenya, Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, and Uganda.
- VALRcorePartnership enabling VALR's 1.7M+ users across Africa to fund crypto accounts using mobile money in local currencies. Connects VALR to Onafriq's network of nearly 1B mobile wallets across 43 markets. Deposits converted to stablecoins for trading.
- ConduitcorePartnership to expand real-time stablecoin payments across African currencies. Enables Onafriq to on-ramp USDC payments, manage global treasury through stablecoins, and make same-day payouts. Conduit reported 80% growth in African customers Q3-Q4 2025.
- PAPSS (Pan-African Payment and Settlement System)coreLaunched Africa's first wallet-based outbound payments pilot from Nigeria to Ghana, fully in Naira, instant, without hard currency conversion. Approved by CBN, operational from December 1, 2025 for six months. Connects 1B+ mobile wallets with 160+ commercial banks across 19 African countries.
- VisacoreStrategic partnership to launch Visa Pay in Democratic Republic of Congo. Cloud-native Payments-as-a-Service platform enabling consumers to fund digital wallets from mobile money channels (M-Pesa, Airtel Money, Orange Money). Bridges Visa's global card network with Onafriq's mobile money infrastructure.
- First Atlantic Bank & Agricultural Development BankcorePartnership for card-to-wallet transfer feature in Ghana, enabling users to move funds between prepaid cards and mobile money wallets. Enabled through Onafriq's 2023 acquisition of Global Technology Partners.
- PAPSS (Pan-African Payment and Settlement System)coreLaunched cross-border payment service in Ghana piloting outbound transactions. Six-month pilot approved by Bank of Ghana with Afreximbank as settlement entity. Enables faster, cost-effective transactions for SMEs and individuals.
- Global Technology Partners (GTP)coreAcquisition of GTP accelerating card connectivity to mobile money users. Based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, GTP supports 80+ banks across 34 African countries.
- BaxicoreAcquisition of Baxi, Nigeria's cash-in/cash-out operator. Baxi holds PSSP and PTSP licenses from CBN. 460,000+ agent network across Nigeria.
- Maviance PLCminor$3M seed investment in Cameroon-based fintech. Strategic investor leveraging Onafriq's pan-African infrastructure to deliver digital financial products in CEMAC region.
- Xoom (PayPal)corePartnership enabling Xoom customers in UK, Europe, and North America to send money to mobile money wallets in Cameroon, Ghana, Rwanda, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe through MFS Africa Hub.
- BeyoniccoreAcquisition of Beyonic, provider of digital payment management solutions for SMEs, fintechs, and social impact organizations. Expands domestic payment capabilities and enterprise services.
- VisacorePartnership to bridge Africa's mobile money ecosystem with digital payments. Onafriq distributes Visa payment credentials allowing mobile money users to generate virtual cards. Integration with Visa Direct for real-time push payments.
- WorldRemitcorePartnership expanding mobile money transfers across Africa. WorldRemit's diaspora customers can send instant, low-cost transfers to 15M+ mobile money users through Onafriq network.
- EcobankcoreDigital payment partnership enabling Ecobank's 20M+ customers to send/receive money to/from 170M+ mobile money users. First major interoperability initiative between bank accounts and mobile money customers in Africa.
- SochitelminorAcquisition of international airtime top-up provider. Creates largest value transfer network focused on Africa with access to 320M+ mobile wallets and 50,000+ direct outlets.
- Airtel MalawicoreLaunch of mobile money remittances from South Africa to Airtel Money customers in Malawi through MFS Africa Hub.
- MTN Rwanda/UgandacoreLaunch of xP2P mobile-to-mobile remittance service between MTN Rwanda and MTN Uganda. Enables seamless cross-border transfers at fraction of current costs.
Scale indicators10 records
Recent moves14 records
Expansion highlights7 records
Onafriq competitors and assessment
Company assessmentPeers
Direct peers
- Remitly: Digital remittance company serving diaspora senders with payouts to mobile wallets and bank accounts globally, including Africa. Comparable as a competing remittance payout platform for diaspora flows into African mobile money wallets.
- Interswitch: Nigeria-headquartered pan-African digital payments and commerce company operating Verve (card scheme), Quickteller, and payment processing infrastructure. Comparable as an African payment processor with card scheme, switching, and interoperability capabilities serving similar bank and merchant customers.
- Paystack: Stripe-owned African online payment gateway for businesses to accept payments via cards and mobile money. Comparable as an African payment API platform targeting developers and merchants, though more collection-focused than Onafriq's network-of-networks role.
- Thunes: Cross-border mobile payments network enabling real-time payouts to mobile wallets and bank accounts in 130+ countries. Closely comparable as a payments interoperability layer connecting global platforms to emerging market wallets and bank accounts.
- TerraPay: Cross-border B2B payments network connecting banks, mobile wallets, and remittance operators globally with focus on emerging markets. Directly comparable to Onafriq's "network of networks" positioning and B2B2C payout use cases, particularly in Africa and Asia corridors.
- dLocal: Cross-border payments platform specializing in emerging markets including Africa, enabling global merchants to accept local payment methods. Comparable as a cross-border emerging market payments enabler, though more collection/merchant-focused than Onafriq's mobile money interoperability focus.
- WorldRemit: Digital cross-border remittance platform sending money to mobile wallets and bank accounts across Africa and other emerging markets. Comparable as an Onafriq partner and competing remittance endpoint, with overlapping mobile-money payout capabilities.
- Flutterwave: Africa-focused digital payments gateway serving global merchants and African businesses with collection, disbursement, and FX capabilities. Closely comparable as a pan-African payment infrastructure player targeting similar enterprise and fintech customers, though more merchant-collection focused than Onafriq's mobile-wallet interoperability angle.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks3 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Onafriq social profiles
Digital presenceOnafriq compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance9 records
Onafriq financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Onafriq leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles14 records
Onafriq subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries5 records
Onafriq funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Onafriq 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 Onafriq
What does Onafriq do?
Onafriq operates a pan-African digital payments network that connects 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ cross-border payment corridors across 40+ African markets through a single API integration. Its core service lines are Collections, Disbursements, Card Issuance (via FASTBIN), Agent Banking (via Baxi network), and Treasury Services, providing interoperability between mobile money operators, banks, money transfer organizations, and enterprises.
Is Onafriq a public or private company?
Onafriq is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed.
When was Onafriq founded?
Onafriq was founded in 2010. It employs 501 to 1,000 people.
Where is Onafriq based?
Onafriq is headquartered in Gauteng, South Africa, in the Africa region.
How does Onafriq make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Payment Processing & Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are API Access & Integration Services, card Issuance & Processing and agent Banking (Baxi).
Who are Onafriq's main competitors?
Wave (Wave Senegal / Wave Mobile Money) is listed as a peer. Direct peers are Remitly, Interswitch, Paystack, Thunes, TerraPay, dLocal, WorldRemit and Flutterwave.
Does Onafriq have an API?
Yes. Onafriq provides a RESTful API enabling cross-border, cross-currency, and cross-network digital payments across Africa. Developers can build and automate transactions including mobile money transfers, bulk disbursements, merchant payments, bank-to-wallet transfers, collections, and card issuing through a single integration point. The API provides access to 1 billion mobile wallets, 500 million bank accounts, and 2,000+ cross-border payment corridors across 40+ African markets. Developer documentation is at apidocs.beyonic.com.
What industry is Onafriq in?
Onafriq's product category is Cross-Border Payments Infrastructure. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAMAFAK, Cross-Border & FX Payments Platforms, with a secondary code of FSAGAKAC, Cross-Border B2B2C Payouts (Mass Payouts, Gig/Creator, Marketplace). Its NAICS code is 52232 and its SIC code is 6159.