A Chinese regulatory inquiry into OPay shortly before the Nigerian-focused fintech withdrew its planned $304m initial public offering in the United States may have contributed to the decision, according to a Bloomberg report.
The report, published on Wednesday and citing people familiar with the matter, provides the first indication that Chinese authorities were behind the foreign regulatory inquiry that disrupted OPay’s proposed listing on the New York Stock Exchange.
OPay had planned to raise approximately $304m by offering 16 million American depositary shares at $19 each on October 30. The proposed pricing placed the company’s valuation at about $4bn.
However, trading in the shares never began after OPay and its underwriters mutually terminated their underwriting agreement following the inquiry.
The reported intervention has drawn attention because OPay has no business operations or revenue in mainland China, despite its links to Chinese businessman Zhou Yahui, the company’s founder.
Zhou also founded Kunlun Tech, which previously owned the dating platform Grindr, and was part of a consortium that acquired a stake in Norwegian technology company Opera in 2016.
Although OPay is incorporated in the Cayman Islands and headquartered in Singapore, Nigeria accounts for most of its revenue. The company also operates in Indonesia, Egypt and Pakistan.
Before the planned listing, OPay had addressed the possibility of regulatory scrutiny from China in its filing with the United States Securities and Exchange Commission.
In the October 23 filing, the fintech disclosed that its Chinese legal advisers had concluded that it did not require approval or filing with the China Securities Regulatory Commission (CSRC) before proceeding with the US listing.
The legal opinion cited OPay’s lack of revenue from mainland China in 2025, the location of its operating assets and business activities outside the country, and the fact that most of its senior management were neither Chinese citizens nor domiciled in mainland China.
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However, the company acknowledged that uncertainty remained over how China’s overseas listing regulations could be interpreted and applied. It also warned that it could not guarantee it would never become subject to those requirements.
In a statement issued on October 30 after the withdrawal, OPay described the inquiry as concerning a jurisdiction that was not material to its core business operations.
The company said its decision followed careful consideration and discussions with its underwriters, insisting that the withdrawal should not be interpreted as a reflection of its business performance, financial condition, operational integrity or regulatory standing.
OPay’s planned IPO had attracted attention because of its scale and the company’s growing presence in Nigeria’s digital financial services market.
The fintech reported revenue of $467.1m and net income of $90.9m in the first half of 2026. It also disclosed approximately 50.1 million monthly active users as of July.
The proposed listing was expected to give international investors an opportunity to buy into one of Africa’s largest digital financial services companies and provide OPay with access to public-market capital.
However, the withdrawal has left its proposed $4bn valuation and plans for a US stock market debut unresolved, while raising questions about the extent to which regulatory concerns in countries where a company has limited or no operations can affect its international fundraising plans.
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.
