Born from Talk360, NjiaPay is building a seamless aggregation and orchestration layer for African SMEs navigating complex payment landscapes.
From Friction to Functionality
Payment infrastructure has long been a roadblock for businesses in Africa. For startups and SMEs operating across fragmented domestic and cross-border markets, juggling multiple payment service providers (PSPs) often leads to high costs, compliance risks, and logistical headaches. A new player, NjiaPay (site), is tackling these hurdles head-on.
The spin-out startup from South Africa’s Talk360 was launched in response to persistent challenges encountered with existing PSPs. Founded in 2016 by South African venture builder Dean Hiine alongside Dutch entrepreneurs Hans Osnabrugge and Jorne Schamp, Talk360 is a user-friendly app that enables consumers to make low-cost international calls to both mobile and landline numbers.
According to NjiaPay CEO and co-founder Jonatan Allback, “After a series of frustrating experiences trying to work with a number of larger PSPs in Africa, Talk360 decided to build out an aggregation and orchestration platform, since they identified payments being one of the biggest challenges to grow.”
NjiaPay emerged as the answer—designed to consolidate Africa’s fragmented payment infrastructure and offer simpler, scalable solutions to small and mid-sized businesses.
Building for African Realities
NjiaPay has developed an API layer that integrates multiple PSPs and banks, enabling businesses to access everything from card payments and mobile money to bank transfers and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) schemes in a single interface. What sets NjiaPay apart is its sharp focus on operational pain points that plague mid-market businesses.
“Whether it’s cross-border payments, domestic payment methods, risk, redundancy, or reconciliation, NjiaPay bridges the gap between fragmented payments ecosystems and solves real needs for smaller and mid-market online businesses,” Allback said.
By offering automatic transaction reconciliation and a built-in ledger, NjiaPay reduces the manual effort required to manage payment flows—something that has traditionally eaten into time and resources for Africa’s growing digital economy players.
Tested by Talk360, Now Scaled for Others
NjiaPay’s capabilities were originally developed in-house to support Talk360. But as the platform matured, the team recognized a broader market opportunity. Now operating as an independent company, NjiaPay is already being used by third-party clients in Kenya, South Africa, and Nigeria.
Built with scalability and compliance in mind, the platform offers end-to-end visibility for businesses managing payments across multiple geographies—key for firms navigating Africa’s diverse regulatory and banking environments.
Backing Innovation with Local Insight
Talk360’s venture studio approach enabled NjiaPay to spin out with early operational experience, user data, and a clear product-market fit. That gives the startup a head start in a sector that’s increasingly crowded but still underserved, particularly when it comes to tailored solutions for SMEs.
With ambitions to deepen its market presence across more African countries, NjiaPay is positioning itself as a trusted infrastructure partner for businesses that want to grow without being bogged down by back-end payment complexity.
NjiaPay has attracted investor interest, successfully closing an oversubscribed $1.3 million pre-seed funding round earlier this year. The round was led by HAVAIC, with participation from Renew Capital and several angel investors across Africa and Europe. While the company is already operating in Nigeria and Kenya, its primary focus remains on the South African market for the time being.
As Africa’s digital economy accelerates, platforms like NjiaPay could play a critical role in enabling inclusive, cross-border commerce.
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