PayPal
PayPal Holdings Inc. said it has entered a partnership with a Kenyan digital payments provider, in line with a general trend among financial-technology giants to gain exposure to new regions.
The company’s new partnership will allow Kenyan consumers to transfer money between their accounts with PayPal PYPL, -4.02% and their accounts with M-PESA, a popular mobile payments company in the country. PayPal said its arrangement will enable Kenyan customers to buy items from global PayPal merchants and sell items worldwide.
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“PayPal’s collaboration with M-PESA is part of the company’s long-term strategy to enable e-commerce and democratize financial services on the African continent,” said Efi Dahan, PayPal’s general manager for the Middle East, Africa, and Russia, in a release.
Ant Financial, an Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. BABA, -2.93% affiliate, is also trying to make a more global push. Ant, which is a dominant presence in China, Korea, and Japan, is trying to gain ground in India. Both Ant and Alibaba own stakes in Paytm Payments Bank, a prominent Indian industry player.