PalmPay has emerged as Africa’s fastest-growing fintech, according to The Financial Times’ annual list of Africa’s fastest-growing companies. The Lagos-based digital finance platform, launched in 2017, posted revenue of $63.9 million in 2023 and has expanded its workforce to over 1,000 employees.
PalmPay’s momentum has carried into 2025. In May, the company revealed it had processed 15 million daily transactions in the first half of the year. Its user base has now surpassed 35 million, with the average user transacting 50 times monthly, underscoring PalmPay’s deepening role in users’ everyday financial habits.
Among the top three firms in the FT ranking, PalmPay is the only one with operations in more than three countries.
Currently active in Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya, the fintech plans to expand into four new markets — Tanzania, Uganda, South Africa, and Côte d’Ivoire — by the end of 2025. The company also reported that its savings product paid out over ₦4 billion in interest to users last year, as it doubles down on building wealth tools for underserved consumers.
PalmPay’s ranking is based on research compiled by The Financial Times in collaboration with data firm Statista. To be eligible, companies had to meet strict criteria: revenue of at least $100,000 in 2020 and $1.5 million in 2023, headquarters in Africa, and revenue growth primarily driven by organic (internal) expansion.
Only independent companies (not subsidiaries or branches) were considered. All figures were converted to U.S. dollars using yearly average exchange rates, and companies needed to achieve a minimum compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8% to qualify. Statista also conducted quality assurance checks, verifying company-reported data and supplementing missing information.
Beyond PalmPay, several other Nigerian startups made a strong showing in the ranking. OmniRetail retained its title as Africa’s fastest-growing company overall, generating $120 million in 2023 revenue. The B2B eCommerce platform raised a $20 million Series A round this year to fuel expansion across West Africa and acquired Traction Apps to bolster its fintech offerings.
Remedial Health, a healthtech platform improving pharmaceutical supply chains, rounded out the top three. Other notable Nigerian entries include Termii, a communications API provider for customer engagement, and newly crowned unicorn Moniepoint, which continues to expand its footprint across Nigeria.
