Digital payments company MFS Africa acquired US-based Global Technology Partners (GTP), a card-issuing startup, which will let MFS issue virtual debit cards to its customers. MFS Africa paid $34M for GTP through cash and shares.

Why should we care?
This acquisition demonstrates the increasingly deep pockets of African fintechs, while also highlighting the gaps that still prevent many African consumers from accessing digital goods and services. According to Adesoji Solanke, Fintech Analyst at Renaissance Capital, Stripe’s acquisition of Nigerian payments startup Paystack in 2020 “drove a lot of attention towards Africa and the wheels started spinning much faster.” MFS Africa raised $100M last year through a mix of equity and debt. That it would spend (more or less) a third of that money to acquire GTP suggests the need it’s addressing is massive. Companies like Netflix and Amazon don’t accept digital money payments from Africa, making virtual prepaid debit cards the easiest solution to e-commerce access. “There is more pent-up demand for things like Netflix on the continent than people think,” said Aubrey Hruby, co-founder of the Africa Expert Network. These cards are already being used by around 500,000 clients, MFS’s CEO Dare Okoudjou said, and he expects millions more to follow.