PayPal has pledged a $100mn investment in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) to develop digital commerce, with the programme announced on September 24 to be deployed through equity stakes, acquisitions, PayPal Ventures and technology rollouts.

“For Africa, this is big news. PayPal has already dipped its toes into the ecosystem, backing South Africa’s Stitch and Egypt’s Paymob. Both are fintechs building the kind of infrastructure that could transform payments on the continent. With this new fund, the company looks set to go beyond opportunistic bets and put real weight behind scaling local entrepreneurs,” TechPoint Africa commented.

“The timing matters too. Africa’s funding slowdown has forced startups to seek deeper-pocketed strategic investors, and PayPal is one of the few global players with both the appetite and the infrastructure to add real value. For founders eyeing international expansion, this $100mn commitment could be the difference between plateauing and scaling globally.”

PayPal, a US-based financial technology company founded in 1998, now provides digital payments and money transfer services in more than 200 markets worldwide. It enables users to send, receive and hold funds across currencies through its online and mobile platforms.

“This commitment underscores our dedication to expanding PayPal’s presence in the Middle East and Africa, and our focus is to build stronger connections between local businesses and the global marketplace,” said Otto Williams, senior VP and regional head of PayPal Middle East and Africa.

According to PayPal, the $100mn investment will reinforce existing regional partnerships, including its stakes in buy-now-pay-later provider Tabby, payments firm Paymob and infrastructure company Stitch. The company also opened its first regional hub in Dubai in April 2025, positioning the UAE as a launchpad for its MEA operations.

Despite its scale and brand recognition, PayPal faces mounting pressures in a rapidly evolving payments landscape. Competition from Apple Pay, Google Pay, Stripe and Adyen is eroding its pricing power, while merchants increasingly push back against transaction fees.

In much of the MEA region, local fintechs and mobile money providers dominate consumer payments, often outpacing global players.

Platforms such as M-Pesa in East Africa, MTN MoMo and Airtel Money across the continent, and Nigeria’s Flutterwave and Paga have built extensive user bases.

In North Africa and the Gulf, players like Fawry in Egypt, STC Pay in Saudi Arabia, and UAE-based Network International, PayTabs and Careem Pay have established strong positions. These homegrown providers enjoy deep local integration, regulatory familiarity and consumer trust, raising the bar for PayPal’s expansion strategy.

PayPal competitors (Middle East)

• Fawry (Egypt) – Egypt’s largest e-payments platform, handling bill payments, mobile top-ups and merchant services.
• STC Pay (Saudi Arabia) – A licensed digital wallet from Saudi Telecom, rapidly gaining market share.
• Network International (UAE, pan-MEA) – Payment solutions provider for merchants across the region.
• PayTabs (Saudi/UAE, Gulf) – Regional fintech offering merchant payment gateways.
• Careem Pay (UAE, part of Careem super-app) – Expanding digital wallet integrated into transport and delivery services.

PayPal competitors (Africa)

• M-Pesa (Safaricom/Vodafone, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, etc.) – Africa’s most successful mobile money platform, with over 60mn active users.
• Flutterwave (Nigeria, pan-Africa) – A fast-growing payments processor enabling cross-border payments for merchants across 30+ African countries.
• Chipper Cash (Uganda/Kenya/Nigeria, pan-Africa) – A cross-border mobile money and remittance app with millions of users.
• Paga (Nigeria) – Mobile wallet and payments service with deep penetration in Nigeria.
• MTN MoMo (pan-Africa) – Telecom giant MTN’s mobile money platform with over 70mn active users.
• Airtel Money (East & West Africa) – Airtel’s mobile money arm with strong uptake in rural and urban communities alike.