Payments technology firm Visa has paid $200m to take a 20% interest in Nigeria-based electronic payments company Interswitch at a $1bn valuation, Sky News reported on Sunday.
Sources told Sky News that Visa would become a cornerstone investor through the investment, as Interswitch prepares for an initial public offering rumoured to be scheduled for 2020.
Interswitch has confirmed the valuation, but has not confirmed the size of the investment.
Founded in 2002, Interswitch supplies Africa-centred electronic payments services. Its flagship product is the Verve payments card, which lets Nigerian customers pay at a range of merchants in a country where payments fraud is still rife.
Verve is reportedly Africa’s largest debit card program with more than 19 million accounts active at present.
Interswitch’s other services include electronic payment processing terminals and digital e-commerce modules, and Visa’s investment will underpin a strategic alliance with the company aimed at seizing opportunities in Africa’s digital payments sector.
According to Sky News, Interswitch’s largest shareholder is Africa-focused private equity firm Helios Investment Partners, which participated in a 2011 round of undisclosed size.
The 2011 round included $10.5m from International Finance Corporation, the private-sector subsidiary of the multilateral World Bank, as well as a contribution from private equity fund manager Adlevo Capital Partners.
Growth equity firm TA Associates subsequently provided Interswitch with an undisclosed sum in March 2017.