Through microfinance bank acquisition, Nigerian fintech unicorn Moniepoint growing into Kenya

Following approval from the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK) to purchase a 78% stake in Sumac Microfinance Bank, Kenyan fintech unicorn Moniepoint is prepared to begin operations in Kenya.

Tosin Eniolorunda and Felix Ike founded Moniepoint, formerly known as TeamApt, in 2015. It is a comprehensive financial ecosystem that provides 10 million individuals and businesses with easy access to banking, credit, payments, and business management tools.

It powers the majority of point-of-sale (POS) transactions in Nigeria and is the biggest merchant acquirer in the nation. operates profitably while processing US $17 billion for its clients each month through its subsidiaries.

With a valuation of over $1 billion, the company is currently on a growth trajectory after raising US$110 million in Series C equity funding late last year, making it the newest “unicorn” in African tech. It introduced MonieWorld in April, a new digital financial services and remittance solution created especially to address the dispersed and underserved needs of the African diaspora in the UK. It is currently planning to expand to Kenya.

Moniepoint has been approved to purchase Sumac, which will give it access to the required license to function in Kenya’s highly regulated banking industry, following the failure of its attempt to purchase Kenyan payments company KopoKopo last year.

“As per the parties’ submissions, this transaction will not result in negative public interest issues. Specifically, there will be no employment loss, and all the current employees will be retained under current terms,” CAK said in a statement.

The Central Bank of Kenya’s (CBK) approval is still pending.