Blockchain payments platform Bitmama Inc. has confirmed the acquisition of Payday, a virtual card service provider, marking a significant move in Nigeria’s fintech scene.
This comes nine months after Payday raised $3 million in a seed round and three months after it acknowledged that the company was exploring sale alternatives.
The transaction, which was made possible by Bitmama’s cross-border payments platform Changera, is a significant departure from previous rumors, which included the possibility of a lead investor, Moniepoint, making an acquisition. Changera plans to buy out all of Payday’s clients in order to unify its blockchain payment network.
Many of Payday’s core employees will join Changera when it launches in 2021, working in marketing, customer support, engineering, and other departments. A few Payday employees have already made the switch to Changera as a result of this integration.
It is not yet confirmed that Payday CEO Favour Ori, a founder with a strong technical experience, will be integrating into Bitmama’s staff, but it seems more unlikely that he will owing to Bitmama’s solid technical staff and well-established leadership.
Hopefully, Changera’s handling of the more than 300,000 consumers that Payday previously mentioned will not result in any discernible changes. The acquisition is expected to broaden the services offered to Changera clients by giving them access to Payday’s digital payment options.
Following the acquisition, Bitmama is prepared to start a bold new project. The creation of a novel solution targeted at improving FX transactions for African enterprises is at the heart of this strategy.
Bitmama’s acquisition of Payday is consistent with a larger pattern of deliberate mergers and acquisitions in the fintech sector. It follows previous acquisitions, like Risevest’s September 2023 purchase of Chaka.
