Description
Founded in 2013 (originally as BitPesa), AZA Finance is a regulated fintech platform that provides cross-border payment infrastructure for businesses operating in Africa and frontier markets.
Core Services
- Treasury — Access deep liquidity across 30+ currencies with competitive FX rates, automated currency management, hedging strategies, and flexible pre-funding options.
- Payments — Send and receive international and intra-Africa payments to 115+ countries via bank transfers, mobile wallets, or cash, with a single API or web platform integration.
- Collections — Collect and convert funds around the clock from customers worldwide, with payouts in local currencies.
- Foreign Exchange — Streamlined currency conversions across 200+ currency pairs with transparent pricing, daily rate updates, and liquidity management for large-volume transactions.
Key Features
- Deep liquidity in G20 and major African currencies including NGN, KES, ZAR, GHS, UGX, XAF, XOF, and more
- Bulk Payment API — single integration connecting to numerous payment providers and banks worldwide
- Payments Platform — one-stop web platform for trading and payments in your home currency
- 24/7 transaction monitoring with real-time API status tracking
- 99.5% uptime with round-the-clock customer support
Security & Compliance
AZA Finance holds multiple regulatory licenses including the UK Financial Conduct Authority, Bank of Uganda, Central Bank of Nigeria, and South Africa Reserve Bank. It is certified with PCI-DSS 4.0, ISO 27001:2022, and SOC II standards, ensuring enterprise-grade security for all transactions.
Highlights
Pros
- Shortlisted for the PayTech Awards 2025 in the Best Cross-Border Payments Solution – Emerging & Frontier Markets category, reflecting industry recognition of its innovation.
- Holds PCI-DSS 4.0, ISO 27001:2022, and SOC II certifications, providing enterprise-grade security for processing cross-border transactions.
- Licensed by the FCA, Bank of Uganda, Central Bank of Nigeria, and South Africa Reserve Bank, enabling compliant cross-border payments across multiple African jurisdictions.
- Maintains 99.5% uptime with 24/7 customer support, ensuring reliable availability for mission-critical business payment operations.
- Operating since 2013 as BitPesa, the company brings over a decade of specialized experience in African cross-border payments, FX, and settlement infrastructure.
- Offers deep liquidity across 30+ currencies including rare African pairs such as NGN, KES, ZAR, GHS, UGX, XAF, and XOF alongside all G20 currencies via a single API and web platform.
Cons
- Customer support has been reported unresponsive during critical issues, with Airbnb hosts and other users stating emails go unanswered and phone lines are not picked up for days or weeks.
- The pending acquisition by dLocal, subject to regulatory approval, introduces uncertainty around future service continuity, platform direction, and team structure.
- Payment settlement times have been inconsistent, with Trustpilot reviews reporting funds taking up to 14 days to be credited despite faster advertised processing windows.
- The SARB mandate compliance portal has exhibited bugs, with multiple South African users reporting being stuck on Step 5 with no error messages and requiring days of repeated attempts.
- AZA Finance was erroneously listed in FTX's Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing due to a commercial partnership, causing temporary market confusion until a formal correction was issued.