The Direct Pay Online Group, the leading online payments processor in East Africa, has merged with South African company PayGate to create a pan-African payment processor across 24 countries.

The merger follows the recent ZAR100 million (US$7.3 million) investment in the DPO Group - formerly known as 3G Direct Pay Limited - by Apis Growth Fund I, a private equity fund managed by Apis Partners.

The pan-African payment processor created by the merger will provide local business owners with a single point of contact to accept online payments in 24 African countries, with PayGate supporting its clients' expansion across East and Southern Africa.

PayGate, founded in 1999, enables quick and secure online payments through a wide variety of payment solutions, and offers clients online acquiring in 24 African countries. DPO Group, meanwhile, serves thousands of online merchants in Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania and Zambia.

The merger between the two aims to provide a single contact point for merchants looking to accept online payments across the continent, offering them access to more than 60 DPO Group employees across the continent to provide bespoke development solutions and customer support in their local language.

"We are excited about the opportunity to partner with the DPO Group in building the market-leading payments processor in Africa. The merger is a landmark transaction for PayGate and a reward for our dedication to building the best-in-class platform and maintaining excellent customer service for our merchants," said PayGate MD Peter Harvey.

"This is also an incredible opportunity to support our clients' expansion across the African continent through additional on-the-ground coverage across the Group's countries of operation."

Eran Feinstein, the DPO Group CEO said PayGate had grown into a fantastic business, centred on providing the best online payments processing solution to its merchants.

"This merger allows the DPO Group to build a pan-African payments platform with a presence across eight countries and processing ability in a further 24 countries. Together, the Group will accelerate the growth of online payments in Africa, as we seek to empower every person and organisation to have the option to pay and be paid online anywhere, anytime, and by any mode of payment," he said.

DPO Group chairman Offer Gat said the merger would allow merchants to be provided with a wider range of products and services across the whole of East and Southern Africa, and would give DPO a strong foothold in the large South African e-commerce market.

"The Group will be in a better position to serve the growing number of African and global multinationals looking to serve consumers anywhere on the African continent," Gat said.

Following the merger, Harvey will lead the Group's activities in the South Africa Common Monetary Area, working closely with Feinstein to grow the Group's business.