Allawee Paystack Deal: Accounts Close December 1, 2026

In Short

• Allawee was acquired by Paystack in 2025 mainly for its infrastructure technology and team.
• Allawee personal and business accounts will close on December 1, 2026.
• Paystack is directing personal users to Zap and business users to Paystack Microfinance Bank.

What Happened

Allawee, a Nigerian fintech focused on financial infrastructure, is being wound down as a consumer-facing product after its 2025 acquisition by Paystack. The key point is what Paystack bought. It was not the Allawee brand or a large customer base.

Instead, Paystack acquired capabilities that sit underneath financial products. These include card programmes, account infrastructure, ledger management (the system of record that tracks balances like an accounting backbone), spend controls, tokenisation (replacing sensitive card data with safer substitute tokens), and credit decisioning (automated rules for assessing loan eligibility).

Allawee said it had processed tens of billions of naira in transactions as it built these systems. Investors in the company included Rali Cap Ventures, Voltron Capital, ODX OnDeck Fund, Golden Square Capital, PiggyVest, Carbon’s co-founders, and other angels.

The shutdown timeline is now clear. Allawee personal and business accounts will close on December 1, 2026. Paystack says it will move customers to other products, pushing personal users to Zap by Paystack and businesses to Paystack MFB.

Paystack is also not automatically migrating balances and transaction histories. Customers will need to move their funds and download records themselves, similar to the approach it took after acquiring Brass.

Why It Matters

This deal highlights a common pattern in African fintech M&A. The buyer often wants regulated, proven infrastructure and experienced operators, not a standalone consumer app.

For customers, the immediate impact is operational. People and SMEs need to plan for account closure, export statements, and choose where to continue banking and payments.

For the market, it signals Paystack’s broader shift beyond payments into banking and credit, using acquisitions to speed up time to market and expand its regulated footprint.