Korapay

Founded: 2017-01-01 in Lagos, Nigeria
Headquarters: Lagos, Nigeria

Kora (formerly Korapay) is a pan-African payment infrastructure company that provides businesses with a unified API to handle pay-ins, payouts, and settlements across multiple African markets. Founded in 2017 by Dickson Nsofor, the company initially focused on using blockchain technology to facilitate remittances and funds disbursement for NGOs. In 2019, Kora pivoted to become a B2B payment processor, enabling both African and global enterprises to collect payments, make cross-border transfers, and convert currencies with a single integration. The company holds a commercial Payment Solution Service Provider (PSSP) license from the Central Bank of Nigeria, and is PCI DSS, ISO 27001, and ISO 22301 certified. Kora has expanded from its Lagos headquarters to offices in Toronto, London, and Nairobi, and now processes billions of dollars in transactions monthly for clients ranging from local SMEs to multinational corporations. The company rebranded from Korapay to Kora as it scaled its vision of seamless, inclusive financial infrastructure for Africa.

Detailed Review

History and Founding

Kora’s journey began with a blockchain-based remittance product aimed at reducing the cost and friction of sending money to Africa. After an initial development phase and participation in the Techstars Toronto accelerator in 2019, the company shifted its model to focus on providing a comprehensive payment API for businesses. This pivot proved strategic: by 2022, Kora had secured a commercial PSSP license from the Central Bank of Nigeria, positioning it as a regulated payment processor. That same year, the company expanded into the UK, opening a fully operational office in Birmingham after being announced as a Commonwealth-sourced foreign direct investment project during the 2022 Commonwealth Games.

Product Suite

Kora’s product suite covers the full payment lifecycle: pay-ins (cards, bank transfers, mobile money, payment links), payouts (bulk transfers, cross-border disbursements), and settlement services (virtual bank accounts, fixed accounts, currency conversion). The company also offers card issuing and KYC verification services. The platform is designed for high reliability—the company claims a 99.9% uptime and a success rate optimized through local routing and fraud monitoring.

Regulatory and Growth

Kora has faced regulatory scrutiny; in 2022, Kenyan authorities temporarily accused the company of money laundering, but charges were dropped after investigations found no evidence of wrongdoing. The company continues to grow its footprint, expanding into Egypt in 2025 and reporting a transaction volume increase of over 164% that year. With more than 250 employees across 15 countries, Kora is positioning itself as the essential infrastructure layer for Africa’s digital commerce and cross-border trade.

Key Products

Pay-ins
Accept payments via bank transfers, debit/credit cards, mobile money, and USSD across multiple African markets.
Payouts
Send bulk or single payments to bank accounts, mobile wallets, and cards in real time.
Settlements
Flexible withdrawal and settlement in multiple currencies, including real-time balance visibility.
Virtual Card Issuing
Create, customize, and manage virtual payment cards for teams, customers, or program managers with compliance-first controls.
Identity Verification
Real-time KYC and KYB checks for individuals and businesses across African regions via the Identity API.
Balance & Reconciliation API
Real-time balance information across currencies and automated reconciliation tools.
Payment Links
No-code solution for merchants to request payments via a shareable link, suitable for businesses without a website.
Cross-Border Remittances (Korapay)
Enables diaspora users in the US, UK, etc. to send money to Africa, initially launched for Nigerian migrants.
Kora Payment Engine
Underlying API that integrates with multiple payment methods and provides a single endpoint for all payment operations.
Settlement
Virtual bank accounts (dynamic and fixed), currency conversion, and settlement accounts for marketplaces and platforms.
Card Issuing
Issue physical and virtual cards for businesses, enabling expense management and disbursement.
KYC Verification
Identity verification and compliance checks for onboarding customers.