iPay Africa

What iPay Africa does

iPay Africa (legally iPay Solutions Limited) is a Ghana-based payment gateway processor founded in 2017 and headquartered in Accra. The company operates a unified payment aggregation platform that lets merchants accept mobile money from all three Ghanaian networks (MTN, AirtelTigo, Vodafone Cash), Visa and MasterCard, and Ghana QR through a single merchant account. Underlying technology is a redirect-based REST API gateway (manage.ipaygh.com/gateway/checkout) with merchant-key authentication, hosted online checkout widgets, no-code payment links, USSD-based mobile POS, and official plugins for Shopify, WooCommerce, WordPress, and Magento, plus a merchant dashboard for reporting and bulk SMS.

The business makes money primarily through per-transaction fees structured in three tiers: Basic (1.9% + GHS 0.50), Standard (2.5% + GHS 0.50) for registered businesses, and Enterprise (3.5% + GHS 0.50) for businesses accepting international cards. Additional revenue comes from PayPoint commissions on airtime, utility, and internet-bundle resales (4% on airtime/internet, 1% on DSTV/GOTV, 50% of transaction fee on ECG/Ghana Water), payout/send-money fees, bulk SMS at GHS 0.032 per message, and one-off card reader setup fees. Distribution is product-led self-serve with API-first developer integration and channel partnerships via ecommerce plugins. The company claims 5,000+ merchants and partners in Ghana and lists customers including Ecobank, Vodafone Ghana, African-Regent Hotel, DevTraco, JoyFM, Diana Hamilton Ministries, and Harvest Praise, with a notable footprint in event ticketing and SMB retail. No external funding rounds, parent company, or management team are disclosed in the source data. The website currently displays a notice of 'Temporal Suspension of New Signups.'

Name

iPay Africa

Legal name

iPay Solutions Limited

Website

https://ipaygh.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2017

Operating status

Operating

Short description

iPay Africa is a Ghana-based payment gateway founded in 2017 that lets merchants accept mobile money, Visa/MasterCard, and QR payments through a single account, serving 5,000+ SMBs and individuals via plugins, API, and a PayPoint agent network.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Payment Gateway

akta.pro primary industry

Alternative Payment Methods (APMs) Enablement (BNPL, wallets, local methods) (FSAMACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Alternative Payment Methods (APMs) & Local Rails (ACH/SEPA/UPI, etc.) (CRAFALAG), A2A Checkout & Merchant Acceptance Solutions (FSAMAFAF), QR Code & Alternative In-Store Acceptance (QR, APMs) (FSAMADAH), Bill Pay, Invoicing & Payables Platforms (BPAMAFAF)

Keywords

• Payment gateway
• Mobile money payments
• Online checkout integration
• Merchant payment processing
• Event ticketing platform

Headquarters

HQ city

Accra

HQ country

Ghana

HQ region

Africa

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Software

Cost components

Technology or R&D, Operations, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Transaction Fees: Percentage-based fees charged per successful payment transaction. Tiered pricing based on business plan: Basic (1.9% + GHS 0.50), Standard (2.5% + GHS 0.50), Enterprise (3.5% + GHS 0.50). Fees are paid by merchant on each successful transaction.
2. PayPoint Commissions: Commission revenue from PayPoint agents offering value-added services including airtime top-ups (4%), internet bundles (4%), DSTV/GOTV (1%), ECG/Ghana Water (50% of transaction fee).
3. Payout/Send Money Fees: Fees for transferring funds to mobile money and bank accounts: GHS 0.50 for transfers 0-50 GHS, 1% for 50-1000 GHS, GHS 10 flat for above 1000 GHS.
4. SMS Services: Bulk SMS to customers for birthdays, discounts, and notifications at GHS 0.032 per message to all local networks.
5. Card Reader Hardware: Setup fees for card reader/POS terminal for Standard plan merchants requiring physical card acceptance.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

iPay Africa operates a unified payment gateway platform that enables businesses and individuals in Ghana to accept mobile money (MTN, AirtelTigo, Vodafone Cash), Visa, Mastercard, and Ghana QR payments through a single account. The platform also offers merchant tools for inventory, customer loyalty, invoicing, bulk SMS, in-store mobile POS, event ticketing, and PayPoint agent services (airtime, utility bills).

Product overview

iPay is a Ghana-based payment platform offering a unified solution for businesses and individuals to accept payments, manage inventory, and handle customer loyalty programs. The core product portfolio centers on the iPay Online Payments Platform which unifies multiple payment channels (mobile money, cards, QR codes) into a single account. Key products include Online Checkout for website embedding, Payment Link for social commerce, Invoicing for remote billing, In-Shop/Offline Sales Channel for physical retail POS, PayPoint Services for value-added agent banking, and Ticketing for event management. The platform provides native integrations with major Ghanaian mobile money operators (MTN, AirtelTigo, Vodafone), card networks (VISA, MasterCard), and e-commerce platforms (WooCommerce, Shopify, Magento), along with a REST API gateway for custom integrations. The Business Dashboard provides centralized reporting and customer management tools.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• iPay Online Payments Platform Unified payment platform enabling businesses and individuals in Ghana to accept and make payments through mobile money (all Ghana networks), Visa, Mastercard, and Ghana QR from a single account, with inventory, customer loyalty, supplier payments, and bill payments included.
• Online Checkout Hosted checkout solution that generates HTML code for embedding payment buttons on websites, allowing merchants without technical knowledge to accept mobile money payments with minimal integration effort.
• Payment Link Shareable payment link solution for businesses without websites that generates a custom payment page which can be shared via social media, SMS, or email to receive payments instantly.
• Invoicing Digital invoicing tool that enables businesses to create and send invoices via SMS and email, with support for online and offline payment collection through mobile money and cards, including USSD (*920*50#) offline payment.
• In-Shop/Offline Sales Channel Mobile POS solution enabling businesses to accept mobile money, QR, and card payments in physical retail locations using any mobile device without requiring dedicated POS hardware.
• PayPoint Services Value-added service enabling merchants and agents to offer airtime top-ups, utility bill payments (DSTV, GOTV, ECG, Ghana Water), and internet bundle purchases to generate commission revenue.
• Ticketing Event ticketing solution for creating, selling, distributing, and tracking tickets for events, parties, concerts, movie tickets, and transportation services across online, mobile, and PayPoint outlets.
• iPay API Gateway REST API gateway allowing developers to embed payment processing into custom websites and mobile applications with support for MTN Mobile Money, AirtelTigo Money, Vodafone Cash, Visa, Mastercard, and QR payments, authenticated via merchant_key with IPN notifications.
• Business Dashboard Merchant dashboard providing real-time transaction reporting, sales analytics, customer insights, inventory management, and bulk SMS/email marketing capabilities for customer engagement.
• Bulk SMS and Disbursements Bulk messaging and payment disbursement service allowing merchants to send SMS notifications at GHS 0.032 per message and transfer funds to suppliers, employees, and utility bill payments (GHS 0.50 for 0-50 GHS, 1% for 50-1000 GHS, GHS 10 flat for above 1000 GHS).

Named customers8 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

Yes

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration10 records

Feature8 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• MTN Mobile MoneycoreTechnology or IntegrationCore payment channel integration enabling MTN Mobile Money payments through iPay gateway. MTN is a major mobile money provider in Ghana with significant market share.
• AirtelTigo MoneycoreTechnology or IntegrationCore payment channel integration enabling AirtelTigo Money payments through iPay gateway. Part of Bharti Airtel operations in Ghana.
• Vodafone CashcoreTechnology or IntegrationCore payment channel integration enabling Vodafone Cash payments through iPay gateway. Vodafone is a major telecom operator in Ghana.
• VisacoreTechnology or IntegrationCard payment processing through Visa network for Standard and Enterprise plans. Enables acceptance of Visa-branded debit and credit cards.
• MasterCardcoreTechnology or IntegrationCard payment processing through MasterCard network for Standard and Enterprise plans. Enables acceptance of MasterCard-branded debit and credit cards.
• ShopifycoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial iPay app available on Shopify App Store enabling Shopify merchants in Ghana to integrate iPay checkout for mobile money and card payments.
• WooCommercecoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial iPay Ghana plugin for WooCommerce available on WordPress plugin directory. Enables WordPress/WooCommerce merchants to accept iPay payments.
• WordPresscoreTechnology or IntegrationOfficial iPay Ghana plugin for WordPress available on WordPress plugin directory.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Hubtel: Ghanaian payment gateway and merchant services provider offering mobile money, card, and USSD acceptance with a unified merchant dashboard. Direct competitor in the same Ghana market with overlapping SMB customer base and PayPoint-style agent services.
• Expresspay Ghana (formerly Slydepay): Ghanaian payment processor offering mobile money, card, and QR acceptance for online and in-store merchants. Direct domestic competitor with similar SMB and event-organizer customer base.

Broad incumbents

• Flutterwave: Pan-African payment gateway supporting cards, mobile money, and bank transfers across 30+ countries including Ghana. Operates at much larger scale with enterprise developer tooling and competes directly for Ghana's online merchants.
• Paystack: Nigerian payment gateway (acquired by Stripe) that has expanded into Ghana and other West African markets, offering card and mobile money acceptance with strong developer ecosystem. Larger, better-capitalized competitor in the same product category.
• MTN MoMo Pay / MTN MoMo API: MTN's own merchant payment platform built on top of MTN Mobile Money. As iPay's largest underlying supplier, MTN is also a structural competitor that could disintermediate aggregators by selling direct to merchants.
• Interswitch: Pan-African digital payments and commerce company operating across Nigeria, Kenya, Uganda, and Ghana. Provides payment gateway, card processing, and merchant services that overlap with iPay's offering.
• Cellulant: Pan-African payments platform offering Tingg, a payment gateway and merchant collection product covering mobile money and cards across multiple African markets. Broader geographic footprint but comparable product set.
• DPO Group (Network International): African payment gateway acquired by Network International, offering card and alternative payment method acceptance across multiple African countries. Competes for cross-border African online merchants.

Regional players

• Vodafone Cash (Vodafone Ghana): Vodafone Ghana's mobile money wallet and merchant acceptance product. iPay is both a partner (channel integration) and competitor in Ghana for mobile money acceptance, particularly for Vodafone's own merchant relationships.
• Peach Payments: Payment gateway primarily serving South Africa and Kenya with card and alternative payment method acceptance. Comparable product architecture (online checkout, plugins, developer API) but different geographic focus.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/IpayGH
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCeL8enn354X9qYkrA-PzZxw
• Facebookfacebook.com/iPayGhana
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ipay
• Instagraminstagram.com/ipayghana

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about iPay Africa