PawaPay Strengthens Kenya Presence as Quidexplus Secures Payment Service Provider Authorisation

Introduction

The Central Bank of Kenya authorisation allows Quidexplus Kenya Limited, a PawaPay group company, to provide payment-gateway services for merchants in one of Africa’s most developed mobile-money markets.

Quidexplus Kenya Limited, a PawaPay group company, has received authorisation from the Central Bank of Kenya to operate as a Payment Service Provider.

The authorisation permits the company to provide payment-gateway services, including receiving, processing and settling payments on behalf of merchants.

For PawaPay, the regulatory approval strengthens its position in Kenya and supports its wider strategy of building regulated payment infrastructure that connects businesses to mobile-money networks across multiple African markets.

Entering one of the world’s most established mobile-money markets

Kenya has played a defining role in the development of mobile money since the launch of M-Pesa in 2007. Mobile money has since evolved from a person-to-person transfer service into an important component of the country’s financial infrastructure.

It now supports consumer payments, merchant collections, bill payments, business transactions, savings, credit and connections between mobile wallets and banking systems.

An analysis based on Central Bank of Kenya data shows that Kenya’s mobile-money ecosystem grew from approximately 20,000 accounts and 307 agents in 2007 to about 89.5 million registered accounts and 473,000 agents in 2025. The number of accounts is higher than Kenya’s population because customers can maintain multiple mobile-money accounts or SIM cards. LeadAfrik

The scale and maturity of this ecosystem make Kenya strategically important for payment companies seeking to support businesses operating across Africa.

Quidexplus joins Kenya’s regulated payments sector

Payment Service Providers operating in Kenya are authorised and supervised under the National Payment System Act, 2011 and the National Payment System Regulations, 2014.

The regulations require companies seeking to provide payment services to obtain authorisation before commencing operations. They also establish requirements relating to governance, risk management, safeguarding, operational resilience, cybersecurity, anti-money-laundering controls and regulatory reporting. Central Bank of Kenya, Kenya Law

The Central Bank of Kenya maintains a public directory of authorised Payment Service Providers. According to an independent analysis of the directory published in August 2026, Kenya had 43 authorised PSPs as of 17 June 2026. These included mobile-money operators, payment processors, merchant gateways and payment-infrastructure providers. PaybillKE

Quidexplus is authorised to provide a platform that receives, processes and settles payments on behalf of merchants. This places it within the merchant-payment-gateway segment of Kenya’s regulated payment industry.

The authorisation is important because it gives PawaPay a regulated operating entity through which it can support businesses accepting mobile-money payments in Kenya.

Mobile money surpasses $2 trillion globally

PawaPay’s Kenya expansion comes as mobile money continues to grow globally, with Sub-Saharan Africa remaining the industry’s largest and most important regional market.

According to the GSMA’s State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money 2026:

• Mobile-money services processed more than $2 trillion in transactions during 2025.
• Annual transaction value increased by approximately 23% compared with 2024.
• Registered mobile-money accounts reached 2.3 billion.
• Monthly active accounts increased to 593 million.
• The number of active accounts grew by approximately 15% year on year.
• Sub-Saharan Africa accounted for most of the growth in registered and active accounts.

What PawaPay provides

PawaPay provides businesses with a single integration for accessing mobile-money payment infrastructure across multiple African markets.

Through its platform, businesses can manage:

• Mobile-money collections
• Customer payouts
• Connections to domestic mobile-money operators
• Treasury and settlement processes
• Transaction reporting and reconciliation
• Market-specific regulatory and operational requirements

The company’s value proposition is based on simplifying a fragmented payment environment. Instead of negotiating separate contracts and building individual technical connections in every country, a business can use PawaPay as a common access point across supported markets.

PawaPay states that this model provides businesses with one API and one contract for accessing mobile money across multiple African markets.

Local authorisation nevertheless remains central to that model. Payment regulation, licensing requirements, settlement arrangements, consumer-protection rules and mobile-money infrastructure differ from one country to another. Building a multi-market network therefore requires both common technology and regulated local operations.

A milestone for PawaPay’s Kenya strategy

Commenting on the authorisation, David Kanyora, PawaPay’s Regional Director for East and Southern Africa, described Kenya as one of the world’s most established mobile-money markets.

“Kenya is one of the world’s most established mobile money markets, so receiving this authorisation is an important milestone for PawaPay.

It strengthens our regulated presence in Kenya and our ability to support businesses accepting mobile money payments in the market. For businesses operating across multiple African markets, Kenya can form part of the wider mobile money access we provide through PawaPay.”

The authorisation could strengthen PawaPay’s ability to serve digital businesses, payment companies and other merchants that need to collect and settle payments locally while operating across several African countries.

Africa’s payment infrastructure is becoming more regulated

PawaPay’s expansion also reflects a wider shift taking place across Africa’s financial-technology sector.

Payment companies are increasingly moving from informal partnerships and indirect market access towards regulated local entities. As transaction volumes grow, regulators are placing greater emphasis on governance, cybersecurity, safeguarding, consumer protection, anti-money-laundering controls and reliable settlement.

For payment providers seeking to operate across the continent, licensing is therefore becoming a core part of infrastructure development rather than a separate compliance exercise.

Technology may provide the connection between markets, but licences, local partnerships, liquidity and settlement arrangements determine whether that connection can operate sustainably.

The next phase of mobile-money growth

The next stage of mobile-money development in Africa is likely to be shaped less by the number of people opening wallets and more by how those wallets connect with businesses, banks, digital platforms and cross-border payment services.

Kenya provides an important testing ground for that transition because mobile money is already deeply integrated into everyday economic activity.

Quidexplus Kenya Limited’s authorisation gives PawaPay a regulated foundation from which to participate in this next stage of the market’s development.

It also demonstrates how Africa’s mobile-money industry is evolving: from separate domestic wallet systems towards interconnected payment infrastructure capable of serving businesses operating across multiple markets.

For PawaPay, the immediate opportunity is to help merchants receive, process and settle mobile-money payments in Kenya. The broader strategic opportunity is to make Kenya part of a wider, regulated payment network connecting businesses to consumers across Africa.