South Africa’s Standard Bank Group is in talk to acquire a stake in Nigerian fintech company, OPay Digital Services, ahead of the payments company’s planned listing in the United States.
Bloomberg reported that the proposed investment would give the banking group by assets a position in OPay before the fintech seeks to raise capital on the US market.
People familiar with the matter told Bloomberg that Standard Bank was seeking to acquire the stake ahead of the initial public offering, although the size of the proposed investment and the percentage stake being targeted remain unknown.
In May, Bloomberg reported that OPay had appointed Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, and JPMorgan Chase to work on its planned US IPO, with the company targeting a valuation of about $4 billion.
The listing could take place later this year, according to people familiar with the plans.OPay, which is backed by SoftBank Group and Sequoia Capital, has grown into one of Nigeria’s major digital payments platforms, offering transfers, payments, and other financial services to consumers and businesses.
