Mergers and Acquisitions are surging amidst market exuberance on the exit trail

By Eric Osiakwan

On January 5, 2026, we woke up to the new year message that Africa’s largest fintech Flutterwave has acquired Nigerian open banking startup Mono in an all-stock deal valued between $25 million and $40 million.

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The acquisition brings together two of Africa’s leading fintech infrastructure companies. Flutterwave operates one of the continent’s widest payments networks, while Mono, often described as the “Plaid for Africa,” has built APIs that allow businesses to access bank data, initiate payments, and verify customers.[1]

A Consolidation Catalyst: Mono-Flutterwave Deal Signals New Era for African Fintech

According to Lumi Mustapha, General Counsel of Pareto Mosca Elite Advisory, the Mono-Flutterwave deal is the opening salvo in Africa’s fintech consolidation wave. He predicts that the next 18 months will see 8-12 acquisitions: top 3-5 fintechs absorbing Series A/B companies valued at $50-200M that can’t raise growth rounds.

According to him, when Flutterwave paid for Mono in stock, they revealed more than their balance sheet. They revealed where African fintech is headed: not toward the stratospheric valuations of 2021-22, but toward honest reckoning with markets, margins, and mathematics.

The next 12 months will determine whether Flutterwave manages its down round at $1.5-2 billion, hits profitability, and emerges as Africa’s enduring payments infrastructure. [2]

Paystack’s Banking Foray: Acquisition Grants Unprecedented Control Over Funds

Still in Nigeria, Paystack has officially entered the banking sector through the acquisition of Ladder Microfinance Bank, now rebranded as Paystack Microfinance Bank (MFB). The move gives the fintech greater control over the funds it processes and enables it to extend lending and deposit services to businesses, complementing its existing payments ecosystem.

Paystack MFB will operate independently, leveraging transactional data from Paystack’s payment network to underwrite loans more efficiently, allowing faster approvals and more precise risk management.[3] Following the acquition and to mark its 10th anniversary, it made a massive structural shift, evolving from a payment processor into The Stack Group (TSG)—a multi-brand holding company.[4] The new structure, pending final regulatory approval, includes:

Paystack: The core merchant payments engine.
Paystack MFB: A standalone microfinance bank providing credit and banking infrastructure.
Zap: A consumer-facing payment brand.
TSG Labs: A venture studio and incubator designed to build products.

M&A Momentum Intensifies Across South Africa’s Corporate Landscape

Varun Beverages Ltd (VBL), PepsiCo’s largest bottler outside the United States and majority-owned by the Jaipuria family of India, is expanding its African operations with the acquisition of Twizza Proprietary Limited in South Africa for roungly $125M. The deal will be executed through VBL’s SA subsidiary, Bevco, giving the company control of three Twizza manufacturing plants in Cape Town, Queenstown, and Middelburg.[5]

In February 2025, Motorola acquired RapidDeploy, a South Africa-born emergency response platform, for an undisclosed sum after its investors helped the company expand into the United States, where its software now underpins critical 911 infrastructure.

While the acquisition meant RapidDeploy’s investors got returns on their investment, the deal also proved that African private equity firms can build and scale sophisticated software within their portfolio companies and successfully export that capability beyond the continent. Sango Capital, which manages over $670 million in assets, helped export RapidDeploy to the United States.[6]

Nedbank Group, one of South Africa’s largest abnks with over 8 million customers, has offered to buy a controlling stake in Kenya’s National Bank of Africa (NCBA) Group in a cash and stock transaction valued at $855.5 million, accelerating it push into East Africa.[7]

South Africa Moves to Streamline M&A Rules and Spur Economic Growth

South Africa is moving to ease merger and acquision rules in a bid to cut red tape and lower busines costs in its sluggish economy. The Department of Trade, Industry and Competion has proposed raising the minimum thresholds that trigger mandatory antitrust reporting, menaing fewer deals would require regulatory approval.

Under the draft changes, bother the lower and higher thresholds for reporting mergers would increase significantly, reducing legal expesnes and speeding up transaction timelines. Backed by President Ramaphosa’s Operation Vulindlela reform drive, the proposals reflect a broader push to revive deal-making and restore investor confidence.[8]

These signal a surge in mergers and acquisitions into and out of Africa. These private market deals are a manifestation of market maturation with integration into global markets. The markets are at a critical juncture of consolidation which would result in bigger and better businesses – doing away with the less performing one. The same may be said of the public markets where IPOs and market activities are on the rise in Kenya, South Africa, Ghana, Tanzania and Zambia.

Redefining Expectations: Africa’s 2025 Market Performance Challenges Old Assumptions

Africa’s 2025 market performance is challenging long-held assumptions. OECD analysis shows that scaling energy and infrastructure investments could materially lift growth and potentially double Africa’s GDP over time. EBRD surveys indicate that households in Sub-Saharan Africa are among the most optimistic globally about the future. These are interesting times for long-term investors looking beyond the traditional market cycles.[9]

Last week, Kenya kickstarted the year with its biggest IPO, with the government offloading 65% stake in Kenya Pipeline Company (KPC) at a valuation of $835M, ending an 11-year public offering drought. If successful, it could thaw Nairobi’s long-frozen public markets and boost infrastructure funding.[10]

South African Stock Market Hits Highest Valuation Since 2019

Meanwhile, South Africa’s stock market has reached its highest valuation since 2019. The FTSE/JSE Africa All Share Index recently surpassed $500 billion in total market value, outperforming the equity markets of several peer nations. This milestone caps an extraordinary run, with the Johannesburg Stock Exchange posting a 38% gain in 2025—its best annual performance in two decades.

The rally, led by precious metals and mining stocks, has been supercharged by a 14% appreciation of the rand against the US dollar, pushing the index up 57% in dollar terms. The momentum continued into 2026, driven by rising gold prices and a strong rand, which is trading at its strongest level in three years.[11] The Johannesburg Stock Exchange has listed the Cartesian EasyETFs Balanced Actively Managed Exchange Traded Fund, marking the latest expansion of actively managed investment products on the exchange’s Main Board.[12]

Ghana Stock Exchange Opens 2026 with Strong Bullish Momentum

The Ghana Stock Exchange (GSE) commenced trading for 2026 on a positive note on Janaury 5th, with the benchmark GSE Composite Index (GSE-CI) advancing 11.3 points to close at 8,781.55, representing a 0.13 percent gain as investors returned from the New Year holiday break. The Financial Stocks Index (GSE-FSI) also edged higher by 0.96 points to settle at 4,648.13, though the year-to-date increase stood at just 0.02 percent in the first trading session.[13]

By the following Monday, the benchmark GSE Composite Index (GSE-CI) climbed to 7,005.69 points, representing a Year-To-Date (YTD) return of 43.31%. The Financial Stocks Index (GSE-FSI) also inched up by 0.38 points to 3,428.53, translating into a YTD return of 44.01%.

Cautious Optimism Drives Modest GSE Opening as Investors Weigh Economic Outlook

Market capitalisation ended the trading session GHS139.62 million higher, closing at GHS146.27 billion, as investor sentiment appeared buoyant.[14] The modest opening reflects cautious optimism among investors as they assess Ghana’s economic trajectory following the exchange’s spectacular 2025 performance, when it emerged as Africa’s best-performing equity market with a remarkable 79.43 percent annual return.

The December 2025 listing of the 30-year-old First Atlantic Bank (FAB) takes some credit for this renewed market exuberance on the back of the incredible work of the leadership of the bourse over the last three to five years under the stewardship of Ms. Abena Amoah. The FAB listing presented a rare and resounding signal of liquidity for West African private equity as PCM Capital Partners (“PCP”), completed its full exit from FAB.

This was executed via the FAB IPO on the Ghana Stock Exchange at a time when frontier market investors are hungry for proof that the “private-to-public” pipeline remains viable in the region. The offering was met with robust demand, finishing oversubscribed despite a global environment where emerging market listings have faced significant scrutiny. The exit marked the fourth successful liquidation for PCP’s maiden fund, the West Africa Emerging Markets Growth Fund (WAEMGF).[15]

Kwabena Asafu-Adjei, Principal and Mawuli Ababio, Managing Partner of PCP

DSE Equities Edge Higher as Robust Bond Market Demand Lifts Trading Activity

Equities on the Dar es Salaam Stock Exchange rose modestly Wednesday, January 7th, with banks extending recent gains as investors focused on a small number of liquid counters while bond trading continued to absorb the bulk of market value.

Total equity turnover reached 4.47bn/-, with 2.24 million shares changing hands across 2,836 deals, reflecting steady participation early in the year. Trading activity was reinforced by strong demand in the bond market, where government and corporate securities worth 18.81bn/- were exchanged, underscoring investors’ continued appetite for fixed-income instruments.[16]

Zambia’s stock market emerged as one of the best-performing globally so far this year, as a copper-price boom and stronger growth expectations lifted the Lusaka Securities Exchange (LuSE) to the top of African equity returns.

The benchmark index climbed 17% in dollar terms since the turn of the year, propelled by record copper prices that have boosted mining sector earnings—and investor appetite for Zambian assets. Higher metal revenues have underpinned broader confidence in the country’s economic trajectory, supporting expectations of faster GDP growth.[17]

COVER PHOTO:: Flutterwave acquires Nigerian open banking startup Mono: Hand shake of the two CEOs to cement the deal

[1] https://techcrunch.com/2026/01/05/flutterwave-buys-nigerias-mono-in-rare-african-fintech-exit/

[2] https://www.lumibrief.com/p/flutterwave-mono-all-stock-deal

[3] https://techafricanews.com/2026/01/14/paystack-launches-microfinance-bank-to-expand-financial-services-for-businesses/?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=m_pesa_and_adi_foundation_bring_blockchain_to_60m_users_paystack_moves_into_banking&utm_term=2026-01-15

[4] https://techlabari.com/paystack-launches-holding-company-the-stack-group-tsg/

[5] https://africa.businessinsider.com/local/markets/indian-billionaire-ravi-jaipurias-varun-beverages-to-acquire-south-africas-twizza-in/vm64n9v

[6] https://techcabal.com/2026/01/05/sango-capital-ask-an-investor/

[7] https://techcabal.com/2026/01/21/nedbank-targets-kenyas-ncba-with-856m-takeover-bid/?utm_source=techsafari.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=this-week-in-african-tech&_bhlid=9f19e7a9ba8e9609c9c047e9545950e88d850068

[8] https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-01-27/south-africa-plans-m-a-rule-changes-that-could-ease-red-tape?srnd=homepage-Americas&mc_cid=db47e3457e&mc_eid=0af56d67ff&embedded-checkout=true

[9] https://www.linkedin.com/feed/update/urn:li:activity:7420068942767034368/

[10] https://techcabal.com/2026/01/19/kenyas-bourse-records-the-first-ipo-in-over-a-decade/?utm_source=techsafari.beehiiv.com&utm_medium=newsletter&utm_campaign=this-week-in-african-tech&_bhlid=52a2ef7516ba3b72b32de166fc0462f8ab6f8519

[11] https://africa.businessinsider.com/local/markets/south-africas-stock-market-hits-highest-valuation-since-2019/svj7my2?mc_cid=351ad3a02a&mc_eid=0af56d67ff