Payment switching and processing service play a critical role in financial sector of any economy as they provide solutions that enable seamless digital transactions and enhance financial inclusion.
These Fintech companies act as intermediaries, routing and processing payments between various entities, including banks, merchants, government institutions and consumers.
The digital economy so much depends on the operations of these companies driving innovation and expanding access to financial services. Owing to their vitality, stitching license is the highest licensed granted to any Fintech Under the CBN payment framework.
What is a payment switch?
Payment switch is software program that transfers payment transactions between several acquirers and Payment Service Providers (PSPs) end-points based on merchant-driven rules.
What is Payment Switching Company?
A payment switching company is a company authorized connects financial institutions to enable the flow of fund from one to the other. A central switch authenticates, approves and keep records of the transactions. In Nigeria, the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement Systems (NIBSS) is the central switch.
On the other hand gateways are software platform that link merchants with various endpoints, and their connections are typically fixed and difficult to alter
A payment switch companies take care of all the processes in a transaction, which include verifying accounts and approving or rejecting transactions. It controls all aspects of payment processing, including acquisition, routing, switching, authentication, and authorisation of transactions through various payment channels leveraging Open Banking.
Payment switching and processing companies provide a critical infrastructure for electronic payments, ensuring the smooth flow of funds across the financial system. They connect various participants in the payments ecosystem, including card issuers, merchant acquirers, and payment gateways. Their core functions include transaction routing, card processing, payment aggregation, and risk management, among others.
We have compiled the list of payment switching and processing companies in Nigeria
According to data curated from CBN database, there are currently 16 fintech companies licensed as switching and processing services providers in Nigeria:
- Interswitch
- Flutterwave
- Pay Stack
- Remita Payment Service Limited
- Appzone
- Network International
- eTranzact
- TeamApt Limited (Moniepoint)
- Coralpay
- ChamsWitch
- Terra Switching and Processing
- Arca Payments Company Limited
- Habaripay
- Hydrogen Payment Services Limited
- Unified Payment Services Limited
- Xpress Payment Solutions Limited
Interswitch
Established in 2002, Interswitch is the first and largest payment processing company in Nigeria and one of the leading payment companies in Nigeria. It has over 8,000 billers aggregated on its Quickteller platform and over 41,000 Quickteller Paypoint agents enabled across Nigeria. It’s the issuer of Verve ATM card with over 50 million cards activated on its Verve network across many financial institutions in Nigeria and Africa. Many African businesses especially financial institutions depend on its services for their payment processing, as it processes payments for over 190,000 active businesses daily. Interswitch provides bespoke payment solutions for modern lifestyle, business collections, disbursements, and payments processing.
Remita Payment Service Limited
Remita Payment Service Limited (RPSL), a subsidiary of Systemspecs Limited, a payment solution provider helping individuals and businesses make and receive payment, pay bills across multiple financial institutions.
The company processes over N2 trillion ($5.6 billion) payment transactions yearly. Licensed by CBN as payment switch and processor in 2005, Remita has become payment processor for government ministries, department and agencies, tertiary institutions in Nigeria. Payments into Single Treasury Account of the Federal Government of Nigeria is handled by Remita. It also has banks and retail merchants in its clientele.
Flutterwave
Flutterwave is a Nigerian fintech unicorn that provides online payment processing service in Nigeria and in some African countries. Licensed as payment Switch and Processor by the CBN in September 2022, Flutterwave offers customers in the region switching and card processing services, as well as non-bank acquiring, and payment gateway services.
Flutterwave tech solutions to facilitate transactions between banks, FinTechs, and other financial institutions and can process card transactions, participate in agency banking.
eTranzact
eTranzact describes itself as Nigeria’s premier payment processing platform and Africa’s leading provider of banking and payment services. The company started operations in 2003 as the first fully operational multi-application and multi-channel electronic transaction switching and payment processing company in Nigeria, provides several payment solutions such online payments, point-of-sale (POS) terminals, mobile payments.
Coralpay
CoralPay is a payment processing company that offers wide range of market-reliable and secure proprietary technology platforms that provide a range of payment services and solutions across multiple channels, information on the company website says.
Coralpay was established in 2005 and was granted license as Switching and Processing company in 2018 by the Central Bank of Nigeria.
ChamsSwitch
ChamsSwitch is an electronic payment switch and processing arm of Chams Plc, aleading Information Technology solutions company in Nigeria. ChamsSwitchs Transaction Switching platform processes payment and settlement transactions leveraging globally world-class solutions to facilitate interconnectivity to issuers, acquirers, merchants, service providers, and other switches locally and internationally.
Unified Payment Services Limited
Founded in 1997 by group of leading Nigerian banks, Unified Payment Services Limited (UP) is a card-neutral and option-neutral payment service Provider (PSP)
UP serves as a shared infrastructure for the banking community in Nigeria as well as a PSP.
UP provides the following solutions: Payment Processing and Switching, Payment Terminal Services, Settlement Services, Instant Payments/Transfers, Merchant Services etc.
Xpress Payment Solutions Limited
Xpress Payment Solutions Limited (Xpress Payments) is a switch company that specializes in the design, implementation, and provision of platforms for electronic payments, collections, bill payment and funds disbursement. Established in 2016, Xpress Payments also licensed as payment terminal service provider (PTSP) that supply and manage point-of-sale terminals.