Payments and digital loan firm OPay has announced a new partnership with Mastercard that will see it offer Mastercard’s virtual payment solution. The product will be linked to the OPay e-Wallet.
OPay offers its services in Kenya, Nigeria, Algeria, Morocco, Egypt, Ethiopia, Pakistan, South Africa, and the UAE. It is a significant market that covers the Middle East and some portions of continental Africa.
The first phase of this partnership will see OPay customers benefit from the Mastercard virtual payment solution linked to their OPay wallets, to shop at international brands for leisure, travel, accommodation, entertainment, streaming services, and more.
To note, the product will be available regardless of whether a customer has a bank account or not. At the same time, the product will allow small business owners to purchase goods and services from suppliers abroad, and then pay using the virtual payment solution.
Launched back in 2018, OPay says it has grown its customer base to more than 15 million users and processes millions of transactions per day.
In Nigeria, where the firm set its base first, and where it also has a notable share, users have saved billions of US dollars in the last four years through credit-linked savings accounts from their mobile wallets and small loans from lenders that use its platform.
OPay is also in the process of expanding to more markets in the next three to five years.
Quotes
Amnah Ajmal, Executive Vice President for Market Development, Mastercard EEMEA, said: “At Mastercard, our innovation strategy is rooted in partnerships to support inclusion at scale. Our partnership with OPay demonstrates our commitment to supporting payments providers across the world to create an interconnected global payments ecosystem that benefits an array of consumers with unique needs.”
Yahui Zhou, CEO of OPay, said: “As the leading fintech in the Middle East and Africa, we are delighted to be partnering with Mastercard as we continue on our journey to promote financial inclusion, helping to open up the global economy to more consumers and businesses across the Middle East, and Africa.”
