Paystack Shifts Toward Deposits with Paystack MFB

In Short

Paystack is changing its business model.

It is moving from earning only transaction fees to keeping customer deposits. The goal is more stable revenue in markets hit by currency devaluations.

What Happened

Six years after Stripe bought Paystack, the company is leaning harder into banking.

Paystack started as a payment gateway, it earned a small cut each time a business collected money online. In Nigeria, its pricing has typically been a percentage fee plus a flat charge, with caps. That model works best at massive scale because revenue only shows up when payments move.

Now Paystack wants more income that does not depend on daily transaction volume. It has built new lines that look more like a bank’s balance sheet, meaning it can hold deposits for longer periods.

A big part of that shift is Paystack MFB, a microfinance bank licence and entity that lets Paystack take deposits and offer regulated banking services. A microfinance bank is a licensed financial institution, usually focused on individuals and small businesses, and it can accept savings and provide credit within set rules.

Paystack has also expanded geographically. It now serves businesses across multiple African markets including Ghana, Kenya, South Africa, Nigeria, and Côte d’Ivoire, with additional regulatory approvals in progress in countries such as Egypt and Rwanda.

Why It Matters

African fintechs that only “move money” often struggle when currencies weaken.

If your revenue is mostly fees in local currency, devaluation can shrink your earnings in dollar terms even when volumes rise. Deposits can help because interest income and other float-based earnings can grow as balances sit in accounts.

This is also part of a wider trend. Payments companies across Africa are pursuing banking licences, or partnering with licensed banks, to access deposits, lending margins, and more predictable income.

For merchants, the change could mean Paystack offers more banking-like products over time, not just checkout and payment links. For regulators and investors, it signals that the next phase of fintech competition may be about who can safely hold funds, manage risk, and stay profitable through FX shocks.

For more on the payment gateway basics behind this shift, see Liners’ guide: What Is a Payment Gateway? Nigerian Business Guide (2026).