Peach Payments, a South African digital payments provider has acquired Operativa, a customer software development firm, as part of its expansion strategy.
This marks the first acquisition since the company secured a US$31 million funding round led by Apis Growth Fund II last year.
Peach Payments was founded in Cape Town in 2012. It helps businesses handle online transactions, and is South Africa’s second-largest online payment gateway and has expanded to Kenya and Mauritius.
Last year, this company raised US$31 million from Apis Partners to grow across Africa and enhance its product range. This acquisition of Operativa aims to accelerate that growth. Operativa’s team will now join them with its co-founders, Dayne Olivier and Ben Janecke, becoming Principal Engineers.
Also Read: World Bank Pledges $100 Million for Zambia’s Digital Growth
Integration and Expansion
Operativa has collaborated with Peach Payments since 2022. They have developed various payment systems and solutions that have supported the companys’ swift growth.
These developments include integrating new payment methods like Apple Pay and onboarding new merchants and banking partners.
Peach Payments’ CEO and co-founder, Rahul Jain, stated that integrating Operativa’s team will help achieve their growth goals faster and more efficiently.
“Operativa has been a trusted partner from the start,” Jain said. “Acquiring them felt like a natural next step and a strategic business decision.”
Jain emphasized that the additional capital from Apis Growth Fund II enables them to build new products and expand across Africa more quickly. Operativa’s team, familiar with Peach Payments’ systems, will contribute significantly to these new projects.
Operativa has served clients in financial services, information security, e-commerce, and cloud hosting industries. Following the acquisition, Operativa will hand over operations for its other clients to maintain business continuity.
“We have always enjoyed working with Peach Payments. We believe they can become Africa’s leading payments provider. This acquisition feels like joining the winning team.” said Olivier.