Moniepoint Inc., the parent company of one of the largest business payments and banking platforms in Nigeria, is pursuing global ambitions with the ongoing expansion of operational capacity in its UK entity, WT has learned.
Moniepoint Inc relocated its headquarters from Lagos to London as it rebranded from TeamApt Inc in January 2023 but the new Moniepoint UK subsidiary, WT understands, started to take shape more recently. Engagements with the UK financial regulatory authorities are afoot as relevant licenses are being sought, sources say.
This move, coupled with previous indications of a foray into North Africa and Kenya more recently, is part of Moniepoint’s ambition to extend its footprint across Africa and into global markets, said people familiar with the matter who prefer to remain anonymous as plans are in flux and at a sensitive stage.
A Moniepoint Spokesperson told WT, “We can’t say anything more formally at the moment, but Moniepoint has always been a pioneer in financial services and financial inclusion – and will continue to be so.”
Moniepoint UK Ltd. is currently actively recruiting for a number of product and corporate roles with cards and global payments expertise among sought-after competencies.
Sources speculate that Moniepoint is exploring expanding beyond its thriving Nigerian business, and securing licenses and operational capacity in the UK that would enable it to provide remittance and multi-currency wallet services to the African diaspora is a possibility.
The remittance sector has garnered increasing interest from prominent and fledgling fintechs, as well as investors, especially as a growing number of Nigerians and other Africans relocate abroad—notably to the UK and Canada—in search of opportunities. In 2022, remittance inflows to Africa reached an estimated USD 100.1 B, which represents 3.4 percent of the continent’s GDP.
Diversifying into global markets would present Moniepoint, notably profitable since 2020, with a significant opportunity to shore up its revenue. This is particularly timely as fluctuating foreign exchange rates are impacting the profitability of African startups. By tapping into these new markets, Moniepoint would be looking to capitalise on the increasing demand for cross-border payment services and fortify its market presence.
Its Nigerian business, Moniepoint MFB, is on a growth tear demonstrated by last year’s impressive showing when it hit 5.2 billion transactions, translating to over USD 150 B in processed value, per internal numbers.
Led by Co-Foudner/CEO Tosin Eniolorunda since inception in 2019, the QED-backed startup has quickly penetrated the Nigerian market with its signature light-blue POS devices—over 800,000 of those—now a common sight, from street vendors to shopping malls.
Currently, Moniepoint operates three distinct products—its agency banking arm, the online payment gateway Monnify, and its newly introduced personal banking service.
The latter demonstrates a strategic move that could prove crucial in an evolving landscape where cash and so-called POS agents become less relevant and end-to-end platform ownership affords an edge. Success in this new area, perhaps its biggest test yet, would depend on how Moniepoint holds its own in Nigeria’s highly competitive consumer banking space featuring legacy institutions and aggressive upstarts.
