Standard Bank Secures ~$185M Private Placement in OPay Ahead of NYSE Debut

JOHANNESBURG & LAGOS — Standard Bank Group, Africa’s largest lender by total assets, has agreed to acquire an equity stake of approximately $185 million (approx. R3.25 billion / N298 billion) in Nigeria-focused digital payments operator OPay Limited via its subsidiary, Stanbic Africa Holdings.

The private placement deal is structured to close concurrently with, or immediately following, OPay's planned initial public offering (IPO) on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol OPAY. Standard Bank's outlay is capped at the lowest of $200 million, 0.98% of OPay's qualifying regulatory capital, or a 4.99% equity stake at the final IPO valuation.

Growth Trajectory and Financial Performance

The pre-IPO capital commitment comes as OPay files its registration statement on Form F-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Reports indicate the market debut could target a valuation of approximately $4 billion, double its $2 billion valuation following a SoftBank-led Series C round in 2021.

OPay's financial performance reflects rapid credit expansion and high user retention across West Africa:

• Revenue Scaling: For the six months ended June 30, 2026, OPay recorded $467.1 million in revenue, a 136% year-on-year increase from $197.5 million in H1 2025.
• Net Income Expansion: Net profit for H1 2026 climbed to $90.9 million, up from $21.7 million in the prior-year period. This follows full-year 2025 net profits of $72.5 million.
• User Network: Monthly active users across its consumer and merchant ecosystems expanded 57% to 39.3 millionin 2025.

Commercial Collaboration and Governance Structure

In tandem with the equity investment, Standard Bank and OPay have entered into a non-binding memorandum of understanding to explore commercial integration across African markets. Joint initiatives under review include merchant acquiring, foreign exchange distribution, digital banking services, and white-labeled wealth management products deployed across OPay's app interface.

Upon closing of the private placement, Lungisa Fuzile, Chief Executive Officer of Standard Bank's Africa Regions division, will join OPay’s board as a non-executive director. Standard Bank has agreed to a one-year lock-up period on its equity position following the completion of the IPO.

Following its primary NYSE listing, OPay plans to pursue a secondary listing on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) to enable local institutional and retail participation.

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