Lebara Nigeria has signed a memorandum of understanding with Payaza Africa Limited to integrate payments into its telecom services, as both companies seek to build a digital ecosystem combining connectivity and finance.
- +Payaza to power payments for Lebara Nigeria in telecoms-fintech deal
At the Memoradom of Understanding ( MoU) signing on Saturday in Lagos, Taiwo Adeeko, Payaza’s VP of global acquiring and country manager for Nigeria, said the Payaza will provide a payment gateway and collections for Lebara, leveraging its presence in 10 countries to support expansion.
At the Memoradom of Understanding ( MoU) signing on Saturday in Lagos, Taiwo Adeeko, Payaza’s VP of global acquiring and country manager for Nigeria, said the Payaza will provide a payment gateway and collections for Lebara, leveraging its presence in 10 countries to support expansion.
Adeeko said the company is glad to partner with Lebara Nigeria, adding that the fintech is looking forward to what the two companies will achieve together through the relationship.
He stated that Payaza’s role in the partnership is focused on the intersection of telecoms and payments.
He noted that since entering the market in 2022 with a mission to enable seamless transactions, Payaza has provided the payment infrastructure for the deal
“This includes a payment gateway to accept payments and support collections for Lebara’s services,” he said.
He said ensuring a seamless payment experience is central to the partnership.
According to him, maintaining the trust that both Lebara and Payaza are known for will be crucial throughout the collaboration as they roll out services to customers.
Beyond payments processing, Adeeko said Payaza and Lebara are also looking at embedding finance into the telecom offering. He described connectivity and finance as two key areas that are important for the market both companies are targeting in Nigeria.
Yinka Isioye, director of consumer business at Lebara Nigeria, said the signing of the MoU with Payaza Africa Limited marks the start of a strategic partnership between the two companies.
He noted that the event goes beyond the formal agreement to signal a new working relationship, saying that both organisations share a common vision of using connectivity and finance together to empower people and lives.
According to him, the goal of the partnership is to build a digitally connected ecosystem that is sustainable and can thrive.
He said Lebara Nigeria’s mission has always been about more than providing another telecom solution. The company, he added, is focused on building a digital ecosystem anchored on connectivity.
Isioye said the ecosystem will be powered by what Lebara calls its “telco trade” of reliable, affordable and customer-centric services. He stated that these principles will underpin the company’s offerings as it expands digital services in partnership with Payaza.
In his address, Philip Akinyele, chief technology officer of Payaza Africa Ltd, said consolidating on the gains of the partnership with Lebara Nigeria will position Payaza as a preferred payment partner for other entrants into the telecoms sector.
Akinyele said expansion and ensuring seamless payments are key challenges for telecom operators entering new markets.
He noted that Lebara is also looking to expand into other countries, and the partnership with Payaza is designed to address that need.
He said the agreement means telecom companies will not need to search for another payments partner in each new market. “We already have a footprint there. That makes expansion very easy,” Akinyele stated.
The Payaza CTO added that the company’s existing presence across multiple countries is a unique selling point for new market entrants.
He said delivering a fantastic customer experience will further consolidate that advantage and reinforce Payaza’s position as the go-to payments partner.
