Payment24 Group says it is eyeing massive African expansion after Standard Bank acquired a 40% stake in the fleet fuel management solutions and telematics company.

Cape Town-headquartered Payment24 is a technology development firm that helps companies with large fleets to manage customers, operations and costs through one integrated online system via the Payment24 portal.

Founded in 2014 to fill a gap in the fleet fuel payment space, Payment24 has operations in SA, Botswana, Namibia, San Francisco and Berlin. The company says it is looking at expanding to Nigeria, Swaziland, Lesotho, Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Ghana, among others, after witnessing wide adoption of its fuel management app in SA through partnerships with major filling stations in the country.

Standard Bank, which bills itself as the biggest bank in Africa by core capital, also offers its business clients tailor-made fleet management solutions, which include real-time transaction notifications, detailed reports and managed maintenance programmes.

The acquisition will allow Standard Bank to provide its customers and oil company partners with an effective and digitally-enabled solution to facilitate fuel, repairs and toll purchases across the 35 transport hubs and corridors in Africa, according to the bank.

Derick De Vries, executive head of fleet management at Standard Bank, says Payment24‘s business model aligns to Standard Bank’s key strategic objectives, of developing meaningful relationships that provide innovative solutions for clients.

The acquisition is set to fast-track Payment24’s growth as it can leverage new opportunities, he adds.

“Through our strategic investment in Payment24, Standard Bank Fleet Management will strengthen its footprint across the African continent and will remain the leading digital and analytics-led fleet management services provider in Africa,” notes De Vries.

Payment24’s solutions include the fuel management platform, fleet fuel management solutions, mobile fuelling solutions, vehicle tracking, telematics and geo-fencing solutions – all developed out of SA, to support smart fleet and fuel management and payments on the African continent.

Last year, the company introduced two fuel management payment offerings for petroleum companies BP and Masana’s commercial customers –FleetMove Plus and FleetMove Premium.

The products, which replaced traditional oil company payment systems, ensure commercial fleet customers, who may spend up to 33% of their total revenue on fuel bills, enjoy seamless fuel payments which are correctly authorised and accounted for, while verifying correct driver and vehicle through the Payment24 platform.

Shadab Rahil and Nolan Daniel, joint-CEOs of Payment24, say the new deal comes on the back of a successful three-year relationship with various divisions of Standard Bank. This includes the rollout of the cloud-based biometric-enabled BlueFuel Fleet Card system across Namibia, which ensures only authorised vehicles are able to fill up and authorise transactions.

“We have had a good relationship with Standard Bank for some years, and our new partnership presents opportunities for both Standard Bank and Payment24,” says Rahil.

“Standard Bank is the biggest bank in Africa, so this gives Payment24 leverage for growth into new markets and customer segments across the continent. We are already on a growth trajectory, but this new deal positions us for further exponential growth. We see this as a very strong partnership, with synergies across a number of divisions.”