美上市之际，由软银集团支持的OPay Digital Services Ltd.通过私募方式从非洲最大的银行处获得了约1.85亿美元的资金。
Group Corp.-backed OPay Digital Services Ltd. secured about $185 million in a private placement with Africa’s biggest bank as it prepares to list in the US.
据彭博社看到的、于周五提交的招股说明书显示，这家专注于尼日利亚市场的金融科技公司与标准银行集团签署了两项协议。协议内容包括通过私募方式出售部分股权，以及标准银行非洲区负责人伦吉萨·富齐莱将进入OPay董事会。
The Nigeria-focused financial-technology company signed two agreements with Standard Bank Group Ltd. that include a stake sale through the private placement and the lender’s Africa head, Lungisa Fuzile, serving on the board of directors, according to the prospectus seen by Bloomberg and filed Friday.
此次募资的最终规模将受汇率波动影响，标准银行的持股比例同样如此，但这一比例不会超过4.99%。
The final size of the placement hinges on currency fluctuations as does the size of Standard’s holding, which won’t exceed 4.99%.
根据双方签署的一份非约束性备忘录，OPay与标准银行计划携手拓展多项业务，包括商户拓展、财富管理产品分销以及外汇服务。
OPay and Standard Bank plan to work on services including merchant acquisition, distribution of wealth products and foreign exchange, according to a non-binding memorandum between the parties.
文件显示，OPay计划先在纽约证券交易所上市，随后再在尼日利亚证券交易所挂牌。
The plan is for OPay to do an initial public offering on the New York Stock Exchange, with a later listing on the Nigerian Exchange, the document showed.
非洲拥有全球最年轻且增长最快的人口群体，但很大一部分民众此前一直难以获得正规的银行服务。
Africa is home to the youngest and fastest-growing population in the world and large segments of the continent’s population have had little access to formal banking services.
在广袤的地域范围内建设实体网点成本极高，导致数百万人只能依赖现金交易。如今，各类金融科技企业与移动支付公司正在填补这一空白，帮助更多人融入正规经济体系。
Building physical branch networks across vast geographies proved expensive, leaving millions reliant on cash transactions. Fintechs and mobile-money companies have been bridging that gap and getting more people to participate in the formal economy.
文件显示，目前拥有超过5000万月活跃用户的OPay正携手花旗集团、德意志银行及标准银行推进上市事宜。
OPay, which has more than 50 million active monthly users, is using Citigroup Inc., Deutsche Bank AG and Standard Bank for the listing, according to the filing.
这笔新增资金将助力OPay在非洲市场的扩张，并加速其支付基础设施的建设步伐。
The additional capital will support OPay’s growth efforts in Africa and accelerate investments in its payments infrastructure.
标准银行此次参与交易，体现了传统金融机构与金融科技企业之间日益紧密的融合趋势。过去将数字创新企业视为竞争对手的银行，如今正积极寻求与这些已成为非洲关键金融基础设施的企业展开合作。
Standard Bank’s involvement in the deal shows the growing convergence between traditional lenders and fintech firms. Banks that once viewed digital challengers as competitors are seeking exposure to businesses that have become critical financial infrastructure across Africa.
截至6月底的财年中，OPay的营收增长了一倍多，达到8.06亿美元，其中绝大部分收入来自非洲人口最多的国家——尼日利亚。目前该公司还在埃及、巴基斯坦和印度尼西亚开展业务。
OPay’s revenue more than doubled to $806 million in the year through June, with the bulk coming from Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation. It also operates in Egypt, Pakistan and Indonesia.
OPay计划上市的计划将进一步壮大非洲金融科技企业的上市阵营。此前，Airtel Money也于本周五在伦敦证券交易所挂牌上市，其估值约为70亿美元。
OPay’s planned stock-market debut will add to a growing pipeline of African financial-technology businesses that are going public, with Airtel Money also listing on the London Stock Exchange on Friday at about $7 billion in value.
还有许多其他金融科技企业也是以尼日利亚为起点逐步拓展业务，比如Flutterwave Inc.、PalmPay和Moniepoint。随着金融科技行业的不断成熟，这些企业正迅速从初创公司成长为非洲大陆最具影响力的企业。
A number of other fintechs have scaled their platforms starting from Nigeria including Flutterwave Inc., PalmPay, and Moniepoint. As the fintech sector matures, companies are rapidly evolving from startups to some of the continent’s biggest businesses.