Nuvei has secured authorization from the Payments Association of South Africa (PASA) to offer local merchant payment services in the country, marking the payment infrastructure firm’s expansion into one of Africa’s largest digital commerce markets. The license enables the global fintech to provide local acquiring and payment acceptance capabilities through its unified platform, allowing merchants to optimize transaction performance domestically rather than processing cross-border.

    • South Africa ecommerce growth: 9.9% in 2025 to $8.48 billion
    • Forecast CAGR through 2029: 8.3%, reaching approximately $11.66 billion
    • Nuvei’s global reach: 190+ markets, 50+ local acquiring countries, 720+ alternative payment methods

    Commerce is global, but payment performance is local. Our expansion into South Africa is another step towards giving businesses access to locally optimized payment capabilities at global scale. South Africa is one of Africa’s most important digital commerce markets, and strengthening our presence here creates new opportunities for international businesses entering the region and South African companies expanding globally.

    – Phil Fayer, Chairman and CEO, Nuvei

    The authorization supports Nuvei‘s “Every Payment Everywhere” strategy, which aims to embed local payment infrastructure into its global platform. For international merchants entering South Africa, the license eliminates the need to establish separate acquiring relationships or reporting systems. Domestic transaction processing reduces authorization failures compared with cross-border transactions, lowers operational costs, and provides enhanced visibility into payment performance and fraud patterns.

    South Africa’s ecommerce market, valued at $8.48 billion in 2025, continues expanding at an estimated 8.3% compound annual growth rate through 2029, according to PayNXT360 research. The growth underscores demand for localized payment capabilities among both international brands and regional businesses scaling operations. Nuvei, which operates in more than 190 markets with local acquiring capacity in over 50 countries, provides infrastructure for cross-border and domestic commerce at scale through a single integration point.

    Phil Fayer, Chairman and CEO at Nuvei. Source: LinkedIn

By Gavriel Gavrielides

Gavriel Gavrielides is the Founder and Chief Editor of fintech-intelligence. An ACA-qualified finance executive, he previously served as Group CFO and Global Head of Accounting & Finance for a major international Forex broker with over 800 employees, following a foundational career as an auditor at a Big Four firm. Having spent over 15 years navigating complex international regulatory frameworks, scaling financial infrastructure, and managing global corporate strategies, Gavriel launched fintech-intelligence because he recognized that the traditional boundaries between finance and technology have completely dissolved. He saw a critical need for an industry publication driven by actual operational expertise rather than outside commentary. Today, Gavriel leverages his deep institutional background to cut through the market noise, delivering high-signal, deeply analytical insights into the technologies, regulations, and innovations reshaping the future of money. Connect with Gavriel on https://www.linkedin.com/in/gavriel-gavrielides-103734124/