MFS Africa has completed the acquisition of Baxi
MFS Africa has completed the acquisition of Baxi taking its footprint into Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and perhaps its most dynamic fintech market. The transaction was first announced in November 2021 pending approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria, which has now been achieved.
As well as providing a market entry into Nigeria for MFS Africa, the combination provides exciting synergies: Baxi simplifies and integrates online and offline payments for SMEs and merchants in Nigeria through its omni-channel distribution network; MFS Africa simplifies cross-border payments, integrating payments via one hub.
Baxi’s growth has accelerated over the last 24 months achieving a network of 90,000 and over USD 1.6 billion of transaction volumes in 2021. MFS Africa plans to build Baxi into a key node on its digital payment network, allowing customers to make regional and global payments to and from Nigeria.
Baxi’s distributions network represents a crucial interface for fintechs and other financial services providers to reach Nigeria’s circa 100 million financially unserved or underserved individuals and small businesses. Supporting and nurturing SMEs is crucial to Nigeria’s economy, as they contribute 50% of Gross Domestic Product and provide 76% of jobs (source: FMIC).
The transaction is one of nine transactions in the fintech sector that Verdant Capital advised on in 2021.