Araxi chief executive Bradley Sacks.
JSE-listed fintech firm Araxi, formerly known as Capital Appreciation, has announced its shareholders voted and overwhelmingly approved its acquisition of 80% of the shares in the Pay@ Group.
Araxi also said the competition authorities recently approved the transaction, which is expected to close during May.
Pay@ is a payment aggregator in South Africa, providing bill presentment and collection services for cash, card, electronic funds transfer, direct bank APIs, vouchers, mobile money and digital wallets.
According to Araxi, Pay@ is the largest independent payments processing platform in South Africa, with over 9 000 retailer locations, 150 000 mobile point-of-sale payment points, millions of app downloads, and more than 15 digital payment platforms (banks, telcos, voucher providers and fintech firms).
The company serves a wide range of enterprises and SMEs, including pay-TV, money remittance, financing, insurance and public-sector organisations in South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, Eswatini and Lesotho.
See also
Araxi chief executive Bradley Sacks says Pay@ processed more than R60 billion in transaction value over the last 12 months, which reflects its approach to advancing financial inclusion and meeting consumers’ needs wherever they are.
“Innovation remains central to the team’s strategy and enterprise-focused mindset, with a strong emphasis on being an enabler – an approach closely aligned with Araxi’s own philosophy. Together, we are well-positioned to accelerate innovation and deliver a compelling, end-to-end fintech proposition to our clients.”
“We are delighted with the strong support shown by shareholders for this transaction. Pay@ is an exceptional business with a highly-respected team, strong market presence and innovative payments platform. We believe this acquisition represents a transformational opportunity for Araxi Group and positions us strongly for future growth.”
Pay@’s service offering is complementary to Araxi’s payments division, says the JSE-listed company. It points out that the proposed acquisition is expected to enhance the Araxi Group’s payments capabilities, enabling the combined group to deliver a broader, more competitive and unique offering to its enterprise clients across South Africa. In addition, the acquisition is expected to unlock significant regional growth opportunities across Africa and other international markets.
It adds that Pay@ will benefit from Araxi as a listed, long-term strategic shareholder, as well as from its access to capital, strong transformation credentials, and extensive payments- and digital-related expertise as it works to introduce a range of new solutions.
The experience and skills within the two groups will present the combined entity with unique opportunities and open new ways to deliver significant value to its clients, shareholders and employees, Araxi concludes.
