OPay, the leading mobile money platform in Nigeria, has been recognized as the best fintech company in the country by the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) at its Digital Nigeria 2023 Awards. The awards ceremony, which took place on November 7, 2023, was part of the Digital Nigeria Summit, a flagship event that showcases the achievements and potentials of the Nigerian digital economy.
The Digital Nigeria 2023 Awards aim to celebrate and reward individuals and organizations that have made significant contributions to the development and growth of the digital sector in Nigeria. The awards cover various categories such as e-government, e-commerce, e-health, e-education, e-agriculture, and fintech.
OPay emerged as the winner in the fintech category, beating other nominees such as Flutterwave, Paystack, Paga, and Cowrywise. OPay was selected based on its innovative solutions, customer satisfaction, social impact, and market penetration.
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OPay is a mobile money platform that enables users to send and receive money, pay bills, buy airtime and data, order food and groceries, book rides and hotels, and access other financial services. OPay also offers a range of products such as OKash (a micro-lending service), OWealth (a savings and investment service), OTrade (a stock trading service), and OLeads (a business management service).
For more than 10 years, PayCom has been working in Nigeria, focusing on mobile payments. A recapitalization policy by Nigeria’s Central Bank threatened to push it out of existence until Opera Software acquired the controlling shares in the company in 2017.
That singular investment by Opera has morphed into a revolution that has launched PayCom into the big time, provided employment to thousands of people, and breathed life into Nigeria’s young bike hailing industry such that the government is willing to take a knife to their profit.
In April 2018, the executive vice-chairman of Nigerian Communication Commission Umar Danbatta put mobile money penetration in Nigeria at just one percent while the 2018 EfInA report pointed out that the mobile money penetration among Nigeria’s adult population of 99.6 million people was at 3.3% even with the participation of banks. The number had crawled from just 1.6% in 2016. What is more damning is that 83.3% of those who do not use mobile money said they have never heard of it.
OPay was founded in 2018 by Opera Software, the Norwegian company behind the popular Opera browser. Since then, OPay has grown rapidly to become one of the largest fintech companies in Africa, with over 10 million users and 300,000 agents across Nigeria. OPay has also expanded to other African countries such as Kenya, Ghana, South Africa, and Egypt.
OPay’s vision is to create a super app that offers a one-stop solution for all the daily needs of Nigerians. OPay’s mission is to empower millions of Nigerians with access to affordable and convenient financial services that can improve their lives and livelihoods.
OPay’s CEO, Iniabasi Akpan, expressed his gratitude and appreciation to NITDA for the recognition and award. He said: “We are honored and humbled to receive this award from NITDA. This is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our team, our partners, our agents, and our customers. We thank NITDA for supporting and promoting the digital transformation of Nigeria. We also congratulate our fellow nominees and winners for their achievements and contributions to the digital sector.”
Akpan also reiterated OPay’s commitment to continue innovating and delivering value to its users and stakeholders. He said: “At OPay, we believe that fintech is not just about technology, but also about people. We are driven by our passion to solve real problems for real people. We are constantly listening to our customers’ feedback and needs, and we are always striving to improve our products and services. We are not just a fintech company; we are a lifestyle company. We want to make life easier, better, and happier for everyone.”
Akpan concluded by saying: “We dedicate this award to all our users who trust us with their money and their daily needs. You are the reason why we exist and why we do what we do. You are our inspiration and motivation. You are our heroes. Thank you for choosing OPay.”
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