Moniepoint acquires Kenya’s Kopo Kopo

Moniepoint Inc., a prominent fintech firm based in Nigeria, has received official regulatory approval to move forward with its acquisition of Kopo Kopo Inc., a well-known Kenyan player in the fintech sector. Kopo Kopo is renowned for its digital financial solutions, particularly its provision of unsecured short-term loans to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in Kenya.

The approval for this planned acquisition, which holds substantial significance for both companies, was granted by The Competition Authority of Kenya. The authority’s approval came after the companies met the financial threshold set by the authority, triggering the need for formal regulatory consent.

It is noteworthy that the regulatory authorities stipulate that transactions involving merging entities with a combined turnover or assets exceeding Ksh. 1 Billion are required to seek formal approval from the regulatory body before proceeding with the transaction. Moniepoint and Kopo Kopo successfully fulfilled this financial criterion, necessitating a mandatory notification to the regulatory body for further evaluation, as stipulated by the Competition (General) Rules of 2019.

Tosin Eniolorunda, the Group CEO of Moniepoint Inc., expressed his enthusiasm for this development in a statement to Technext. He emphasised the company’s publicly stated interest in Kenya and its broader mission to provide financial solutions and happiness to people throughout Africa. Eniolorunda stated, “We are thrilled to have achieved the initial milestone of securing regulatory approval for our plans to bring financial solutions and happiness to the people of Kenya. We eagerly anticipate progressing with the transaction and will provide further updates as appropriate.”

The regulatory body conducted a comprehensive assessment of the potential impacts of the merger on the financial market. The evaluation yielded two key conclusions. Firstly, the integration of Moniepoint and Kopo Kopo is not foreseen to introduce any negative competitive effects within the digital credit sector. Secondly, there are no anticipated adverse effects on the broader public interest resulting from the merger.

Moniepoint, formerly known as TeamApt, boasts a significant track record spanning eight years in Nigeria’s dynamic payments industry. Beyond its core competence in payment processing, the company has expanded its offerings to include a range of essential financial services tailored to SMEs. Moniepoint has recently unveiled plans to enter the consumer banking sector, launching a consumer-oriented mobile application and debit card. The issuance of these debit cards to users will be facilitated by payment processors Mastercard and Verve.

Moniepoint’s acquisition of Kopo Kopo is a strategic move that aligns seamlessly with the company’s overarching vision of enhancing financial inclusion and innovation across Africa. This synergistic consolidation is expected to create new avenues for the convergence of technological expertise and financial acumen.

According to a report on the Nigerian Financial Services Market by Intelpoint, Moniepoint holds the second-largest network in Nigeria, with a network of 303,946 POS agents spread across the country. Together, the combined forces of Moniepoint and Kopo Kopo control a staggering 867,208 agents, constituting a significant 57.8% of all POS agents in the country.