Standard Bank Group plans to invest up to $200m in Nigerian fintech company OPay as the digital payments firm prepares to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
The South African banking group disclosed the investment in a regulatory filing submitted by OPay to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission, following the fintech’s application to list American depositary shares in New York under the ticker symbol OPAY.
Under the arrangement, Stanbic Africa Holdings, a subsidiary of Standard Bank Group, will acquire shares in OPay through a private placement alongside the proposed initial public offering, subject to regulatory approval and completion of the offering.
The investment will be capped at the lowest of $200m, 0.98 per cent of Standard Bank Group’s qualifying regulatory capital, excluding unappropriated profit, or the value of a 4.99 per cent stake in OPay at the IPO price.
The bank has also agreed, subject to certain exceptions, not to sell the shares for 12 months after the date of OPay’s prospectus.
Standard Bank is also involved in the planned listing as the Standard Bank of South Africa is one of the representatives of the IPO underwriters, alongside Citigroup, Deutsche Bank and China International Capital Corporation.
The filing further disclosed that Lungisa Fuzile, chief executive of Standard Bank’s Africa Regions business, would join OPay’s board as a non-executive director after the private placement closes.
Beyond the investment, the two companies plan to explore opportunities to expand digital banking and financial services across African markets.
Their proposed areas of cooperation include merchant payments, lending, remittances, cross-border commerce and the distribution of selected Standard Bank products through OPay’s mobile application and merchant network.
However, the proposed collaboration is not binding, and individual projects would require separate agreements and regulatory approvals.
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Standard Bank Group Chief Executive Officer Sim Tshabalala said the companies’ capabilities could complement each other in expanding access to financial services across the continent.
“Standard Bank’s banking expertise and African footprint complement OPay’s digital financial services platform and merchant ecosystems,” Tshabalala said.
“Together we see potential to expand access to financial services, support cross-border commerce and deliver value to clients across Africa.”
OPay’s filing did not disclose the number of shares it intends to offer or the proposed price range for the IPO.
The company was founded in 2017 by Chinese entrepreneur Zhou Yahui, also known as James Zhou, in collaboration with Norwegian web browser company Opera. It launched its payments business in Nigeria in 2018 and has since expanded into other markets, including Indonesia, Egypt and Pakistan.
Nigeria remains its largest market, accounting for 89.5 per cent of OPay’s revenue in the first half of 2026, according to its prospectus.
The company’s financial performance has also strengthened ahead of the proposed listing. Its revenue rose to $536.3m in 2025 from $205.7m in 2024, while it recorded a net profit of $72.5m in 2025, compared with a net loss of $50.8m the previous year.
For the six months ended June 30, 2026, OPay reported revenue of $467.1m, more than double the $205.7m recorded in the corresponding period of 2025. Net income increased to $90.9m from $21.7m over the same period.
OPay had 50.1 million monthly active users at the end of July 2026, while the total value of transactions, payments and loans processed through its platform reached $339.1bn in the first half of the year.
The company’s prospectus also identifies regulatory risks in its operating markets, including the possibility of restrictions or temporary suspensions on new customer registrations.
Standard Bank already operates in Nigeria through Stanbic IBTC Holdings. The proposed investment would deepen its exposure to the country’s digital financial services market while creating opportunities for cooperation with one of Africa’s major fintech platforms.
About the Author
Cecilia Attah is a tech analyst with a degree from Benue State University. She covers tech news and startups at TechRegard with a focus on how technology is transforming Africa and shaping the global landscape.
