Paga

Paga is a mobile payment platform created for easy money transfers and payments using smartphones. Founded in Nigeria in 2009 by Tayo Oviosu and launched publicly in 2011, Paga serves as a digital wallet accessible to anyone with a mobile device.

Paga was established in Nigeria to address the challenge of limited access to traditional banking services, leveraging the widespread use of mobile phones across the country. By combining the strengths of both the banking and telecommunications sectors, Paga offers basic financial services through its mobile app and website.

Customers can use Paga to deposit and save money, buy mobile airtime, settle utility bills, and shop at retailers. Through a partnership with Western Union, users can also receive money transfers directly into their Paga accounts.

Paga operates through a network of outlets where agents assist customers in conducting transactions. To send money, a customer provides the recipient’s phone number to the agent, who processes the transaction using their phone and deducts the amount plus a transaction fee from the sender’s account.

Vision

Our vision for Paga over the next 5 years is to be the number one way to pay and get paid in Nigeria and make payments accessible to everyone. So no matter who you are, where you are or what kind of business you run, you can simply Paga it.

Mission

Paga’s mission is to deliver innovative and universal access to financial services to a larger segment of the Nigerian population. Paga is available on all mobile networks and is delivered to customers in collaboration with strong local banks, retailers and various other private and public sector organisations.

Core Values at Paga

At Paga, we uphold five core values that guide how we work as a team, run our business, and serve our customers.

1. Collaboration: We believe in working together efficiently. Each department relies on the others, valuing every individual’s contribution toward common goals. We pool our skills, resources, and ideas to achieve success.
2. Ownership: We seek self-starters who take initiative and drive their tasks to completion. Paga fosters a high-performance environment where they support team members but expect them to take full ownership of their work.
3. Results-Oriented: We prioritize achieving results over mere effort. Hard work, smart strategies, and a willingness to learn and adapt are key. At Paga, success means surpassing targets and constantly pushing boundaries.
4. Integrity: Integrity is fundamental to our reputation and relationships. We maintain honesty and fairness in all dealings, internally and externally. Any breach of integrity is unacceptable and will result in removal from our team.
5. Innovation: We embrace innovation as essential for growth. Continuously striving for improvement, we encourage creative thinking to develop new products, processes, and solutions. A successful team member at Paga contributes by adding value and innovation to our ecosystem.

About the CEO of Paga

Tayo Oviosu is the founder and CEO of Paga. Before starting Paga, Tayo worked as Vice-President at Travant Capital Partners, a private equity fund in West Africa. Earlier, he was a Corporate Development Manager at Cisco Systems in San Jose, California.

Tayo’s achievements at Paga have gained global recognition. CNBC named him Entrepreneur of the Year West Africa in 2014, and in 2015, the African Leadership Network awarded Paga as the outstanding growing company of the year in Africa. Tayo is also an Endeavor Entrepreneur and a member of the Young Presidents Organization.

He is passionate about helping entrepreneurs turn their ideas into successful businesses. Tayo is actively involved as an angel investor and is a co-founder of Kairos Angels, an angel investment club.

Tayo holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, with honors, from the University of Southern California, and a Master of Business Administration from the Graduate School of Business at Stanford University.

Services

Paga provide the following products and services:

• Send Money: Allows users to send money instantly using a recipient’s phone number, email address, or bank account.
• Request Money: Enables users to request money from anyone using a phone number or email address.
• Get Remittance: Facilitates the receipt of secure money transfers from abroad directly to a Nigerian mobile number or bank account.
• Pay Bills: Service for renewing subscriptions like Pay TV, Internet, Electricity, and more.
• Receive Money: Users can receive money instantly from anyone using a phone number, email address, or bank account.
• Top-up Airtime & Data: Provides instant airtime and data top-up services.

Business Model

Paga’s revenue model is primarily based on transaction fees, merchant services, agent commissions, value-added services, and interest income from float. However, the role of investors is pivotal in providing the capital required for growth, technological development, and market expansion. These investments enable Paga to build and enhance its revenue-generating capabilities, ensuring long-term financial sustainability and growth.