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Innovate 1 Pay, a leading payment gateway in Nigeria, has opened an office in Dubai, United Arab Emirates (UAE), to serve its growing customer base in the Middle East region. 

Founded in 2013 and licensed by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Innovate 1 Pay provides international money transfer, wholesale foreign exchange management, distribution of foreign currency and other payment services. With offices in Abuja and Kano, Innovate 1 Pay is the exclusive distributor of foreign currency to Bureau de Change operators in northern Nigeria. It also provides currency services to travellers at major international airports in Nigeria.

“With the maturing financial markets in Africa, we have expanded our presence to a total of 56 countries,” Mahmood Ahmadu, Chairman of Innovate 1 Pay, said. “With the promise that the new UAE visa regime holds for African professionals, we believe the prospects for growth in addressing this demographic is very promising.”

With the growing trade between Africa and Asia, the UAE has become the rendezvous of leading traders from both regions. TechMoran, a Kenya-based media company, reports that Innovate 1 Pay is positioning its payment gateway and financial services platform to serve as a link between Dubai and several African countries. The UAE launch is also part of the company’s mission to grow its geographic reach and business operations internationally through partnerships in targeted markets.

“The next generation of financial services needs to reflect customer expectations around the secure and quick transfer of funds,” Ahmadu said. “Our relationship with government bodies and comprehensive presence in the African market positions Innovate 1 Pay uniquely in being able to leverage these strengths and amplify them with the use of appropriate user-friendly technologies.”

Innovate 1 Pay offers business organisations, government agencies and individuals the ability to receive their payments in a fast, easy and secure manner. The company says it has processed over a million client transactions and payments in Nigeria and globally on its platform.

“Africa is currently the second fastest-growing continent after Asia, and we are looking at average GDP growth of 5 per cent across the continent,” said Anthony Nwachukwu, CEO of Innovate 1 Pay. “Africa is home to 40 per cent of the people in the world, who lack access to banking services. At Innovate 1 Pay, we see our business mission within the context of this larger social goal.”