Nigerian fintech platform, Moniepoint, has been granted approval by Kenya’s regulatory body, the Competition Authority of Kenya (CAK), to acquire payments firm Kopo Kopo.
The proposed transaction will see Moniepoint acquire all shares of Kopo Kopo and also represents its expansion into East Africa.
While the transaction value for this acquisition is yet to be disclosed, the CAK oversees competition-related matters for transactions exceeding Ksh1 billion ($7 million), which means that the acquisition was the same or exceeded this amount.
The Kenyan Authority granted unconditional approval to Moniepoint’s acquisition based on two key considerations namely. First, the authority’s assessment suggests that the transaction is unlikely to negatively impact competition in the market for digital credit. Second, the transaction will not elicit negative public interest concerns.
Moniepoint was quoted by TechCabal as saying, “We have been vocal about our interest in Kenya as part of our mission to provide financial happiness for people across Africa. This regulatory approval is a milestone in that process and one that we are delighted about.”
Before its acquisition by Moniepoint, Kopo Kopo was valued at about $10 million as of 2015 when it raised $2.1 million in Series B funding in 2015. The credit and payment startup offers similar tools to businesses just like Moniepoint but in Kenya. Kopo Kopo’s partnership with M-PESA allowed for mass adoption of digital payments by small businesses in Kenya.
