FairMoney acquires PayForce to expand financial services for merchants in Nigeria
Nigerian digital banking platform FairMoney has acquired PayForce, a merchant payment service provider that serves small businesses, as part of its strategy to expand its financial services offerings to merchants. The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources suggest that it was a cash-and-stock deal worth between $15
Nigerian digital banking platform FairMoney has acquired PayForce, a merchant payment service provider that serves small businesses, as part of its strategy to expand its financial services offerings to merchants.
The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but sources suggest that it was a cash-and-stock deal worth between $15 million and $20 million. As part of the deal, CrowdForce CEO Oluwatomi Ayorinde will head PayForce by FairMoney, the company’s payments business unit.
FairMoney primarily offers credit-led neobanking services to retail customers, while PayForce provides agency banking services through a network of human ATMs. PayForce's product suite includes business banking, finance team tools, B2B payments and virtual cards.
FairMoney plans to design credit products specifically for different sets of businesses, solving one of the biggest issues facing small businesses in Nigeria: access to loans and working capital.
The acquisition will provide incentives for PayForce-acquired merchants who use FairMoney as their primary bank, including an 18% annual return on deposits.
FairMoney intends to become the number one retail and merchant bank in Nigeria by expanding its offerings to include credit cards, remittance, stock and investment products for retail customers, as well as payroll services, BNPL and online merchant acquiring for businesses.
It is also in talks to raise over $30 million in a bridge round from new and existing investors to fund these acquisitions and expand operations outside Nigeria and across Africa.
