Standard Bank Group intends to invest up to $200 million USD in OPay, a fintech company focused on Nigeria, which applied to list its shares in New York last Friday.
Standard Bank announced the signing of a subscription agreement, although the exact amount was not disclosed. This information is contained in the registration statement filed by OPay with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Stanbic Africa Holdings, part of Standard Bank Group, will acquire shares through a private placement alongside the initial public offering, subject to approval from the proposal and regulatory bodies.
Payment will be made based on the lesser of three amounts: $200 million; 0.98% of Standard Bank Group's qualifying regulatory capital, excluding retained earnings; or the price of a 4.99% stake in OPay after the IPO at the initial offering price.
In some cases, Standard Bank may be unable to sell shares for 12 months after the date of OPay's prospectus.
Role of the Bank in the Listing Process
The bank plays another role in the listing process. Standard Bank of South Africa is one of four underwriters, along with Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, and China International Capital Corporation (CICC). Co-managers are B Riley Securities and Needham & Company.
According to the documentation, Lungisa Fuzile, Standard Bank's CEO for African regions and former national treasurer, will join OPay's board of directors as a non-executive director after the placement closes.
Listing Plans
OPay has applied to list American Depositary Receipts representing its common stock traded in the U.S. on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker 'OPAY'. The application does not yet specify the number of shares offered or the price range.
Bloomberg previously reported on August 18 that Standard Bank was negotiating to purchase a stake, and BusinessDay from Nigeria reported the next day that OPay is targeting a valuation of around $4 billion.
In addition to equity ownership, the companies plan to consider offering digital banking in African markets and selling selected Standard Bank products through the OPay app and merchant network. Other items on the list include acquisitions from sellers, payments, lending, money transfers, and jointly developed products. However, none of this is binding.
The memorandum of understanding signed by OPay and Stanbic Africa Holdings on August 14 states that it 'does not obligate either party to implement any specific initiative,' and any project will require final agreements and regulatory approval.
Standard Bank Group CEO Sim Tshabalala stated: 'Standard Bank's banking expertise and its presence in Africa complement OPay's digital financial services platform and merchant ecosystem. Together, we see potential to expand access to financial services, support cross-border trade, and deliver value to customers across Africa.'
OPay was founded in 2017 by Zhou Yahui (also known as James Zhou) in collaboration with Opera, an Oslo-based browser company listed on Nasdaq, led by Zhou. Zhou also founded Kunlun Tech, registered in Shenzhen.
OPay launched payments in Nigeria in 2018 after acquiring a local financial services provider. In 2021, the company raised $400 million in a round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, valuing it at $2 billion, according to Reuters at the time. Headquartered in Singapore, it also operates in Indonesia, Egypt, and Pakistan, but in the first half of 2026, Nigeria accounted for 89.5% of its revenue.
The prospectus shows rapid business growth: revenue increased to $536.3 million in 2025 compared to $205.7 million in 2024, and net loss of $50.8 million turned into net profit of $72.5 million. In the six months leading up to June 30, 2026, revenue more than doubled to $467.1 million, and net profit grew to $90.9 million compared to $21.7 million the previous year.
As of the end of July, OPay had 50.1 million monthly active users. The total transaction volume, meaning the total value of payments, transactions, and loans processed through its platform, reached $339.1 billion in the first half of 2026. According to the filing, in Nigeria, OPay's active users accounted for about 66.1% of all active users of financial applications tracked by DataSparkle, an application monitoring company, in the first half of 2026.
Zhou owns 21.3% of OPay prior to the offering, Opera owns 8.6%, and SoftBank owns 6.6%.
Regulatory Risks
OPay's filing lists among the risks that regulatory actions in its markets may include temporary restrictions or suspension of new customer registrations.
Standard Bank already operates in Nigeria through Stanbic IBTC Holdings. The bank noted that this investment continues its growth strategy defined at the recent capital markets day.