Co-operative Bank and Paymenta ink strategic "Banking as a Service" pact

Paymenta-Kenya Chairman, Farah Hassan (left) explains to a participant how the payment platform works during the Gulf Information Technology Exhibition - GITEX Kenya 2026, at the KICC in Nairobi, May 20, 2026. [Mose Sammy, Standard]

The just-concluded Gulf Information Technology Exhibition - GITEX Kenya 2026, at the Kenya International Conference Centre KICC, under the Everything Kenya banner, billed as East Africa's largest inaugural AI, startups, cybersecurity, and digital transformation event, aimed at accelerating the pace of global tech growth and rising ambitions of AI economies worldwide.

It featured over 500 participating enterprises and startups, with an initial exhibition floor of more than 280 core enterprises and startups showcasing their technologies.

On its sidelines, the Co-operative Bank of Kenya and Payment, a next-generation fintech platform under the DSSC Global Group, announced a strategic partnership set to redefine the digital payment landscape in East Africa.

The collaboration positions Co-operative Bank as the foundational "infrastructure engine" for Paymenta, leveraging a Banking as a Service BaaS model to scale financial services to both corporate giants and previously unbanked informal traders. 

At the heart of this partnership is Co-operative Bank's robust wallet engine. This backend infrastructure enables Paymenta to provide digital accounts to users who are not the bank's traditional customers. By bypassing the need for physical branch visits and heavy paperwork, the system is capable of onboarding thousands of new users daily.

"Our goal is not to launch another payment platform simply," stated DSSC Global CEO Colin Jordan. "We are building a financial ecosystem created by Africans, for Africans - one that empowers communities, supports businesses, and drives economic participation across borders."

For Co-operative Bank, the move is a tactical expansion led by the digital onboarding team. The bank provides the "plug-and-play" regulatory and payment infrastructure, while Paymenta manages the front-end customer experience.

Zack Maina, Head of Digital Partnerships at Co-operative Bank, emphasised the bank's open-collaboration philosophy: "We are responsible for onboarding fintechs and digital service providers that align with our strategic direction. This partnership allows us to extend our reach through a reliable system, operational since 2025, that now boasts 99.9% reliability." 

Paymenta's launch in Kenya and Tanzania follows a period of explosive growth in South Africa, where its user base surged by 450% following its license acquisition in late 2025. Under the DSSC Global Group, Paymenta aims to bridge the gap between urban centres and underserved rural communities through a suite of services that will include Merchant solutions, which will transform ordinary smartphones into POS devices. Utility and bill payment that will integrate airtime and digital voucher systems. Advance Tech: Inclusion of crypto trading, KYC compliance, and smart ATM technology.

"Built in Africa, Empowering Africa," remains the guiding principle. "We believe that financial technology should not only drive commerce but also create opportunities for entrepreneurs and informal traders," Jordan noted.

The partnership signifies a shift in the Kenyan banking sector, where traditional institutions are increasingly acting as the " rails" for agile fintech innovators. As the platform scales, the focus remains on maintaining high system reliability and aggressively rolling out merchant services to foster a "socially enabled" financial environment across the continent.