In a year of big moves, South African fintech star Stitch has just dropped a big reveal: it’s acquired Efficacy Payments, marking its second major buyout of 2025.
This deal places Stitch into an elite league as one of the first fintechs in South Africa to offer direct card acquiring services, bypassing complicated intermediary banks.
With this acquisition, Stitch is rewriting the rules of payments, promising merchants smoother transactions, lower costs, and a tech-driven edge. Here’s why this move is a turning point for Africa’s payment landscape.
A Powerhouse in the Making
Founded in 2021, Stitch has been on a growth trajectory, emerging from behind the scenes to become a heavyweight in Africa’s fragmented payments market.
Its latest acquisition of Efficacy Payments, announced in July 2025, follows its January purchase of ExiPay, now rebranded as “Stitch In-Person Payments.”
Together, these deals make Stitch a one-stop shop for all-around payments, handling everything from online checkouts to in-store card swipes.
With clients like Takealot, MTN, Vodacom, and Hollywoodbets, Stitch is already a trusted name for Africa’s biggest enterprises.
READ ALSO:Why Stitch’s $55M Raise Signals Confidence in African Fintech
Closing the Payment Loop
What makes the Efficacy acquisition a big deal? It’s all about control. Efficacy, founded in 2016, earned its stripes as South Africa’s second fintech to secure a Designated Clearing System Participant (DCSP) status in 2021.
This rare designation means Stitch can now manage the entire card payment lifecycle from gateway to switch to acquirer without relying on intermediary banks or third-party processors. No middlemen, no friction, no extra costs.
By integrating Efficacy’s tech, Stitch offers merchants a seamless experience with direct connections to Visa and Mastercard.
This cuts out potential failure points, boosts transaction success rates, and speeds up settlements. Consider a retailer like Takealot slashing reconciliation headaches or a telco like MTN tracking transactions in real time.
Stitch’s platform delivers exactly that, plus custom reporting and lower fees by eliminating third-party dependencies.
Merchants Win Big
The benefits for merchants are crystal clear. With Efficacy’s capabilities, Stitch is delivering:
- Better conversion rates through optimised message paths.
- Real-time transaction tracking for instant insights.
- Cost savings by cutting out intermediaries.
- Custom reconciliation timelines to save time and resources.
Whether it’s a multi-lane retailer, a telecom giant, or an e-commerce platform, Stitch’s unified infrastructure is built to make payments painless and efficient.
READ ALSO:Customers to Enjoy More Products with Online and In-Person Payment with Stitch Latest Acquisition
A Well-Funded Vision
Stitch’s ambitions are backed by serious cash. In April 2025, the company raised $55 million in a Series B round led by QED Investors, with heavyweights like Flourish Ventures, Norrsken22, and Ribbit Capital joining the party.
This brought Stitch’s total funding to a massive $107 million in just four years. The funds are enabling its push into card acquiring, expanding in-person payments (thanks to ExiPay), and enhancing its online suite, including the Express checkout for platforms like Shopify and Woo.
Why It Matters
South Africa’s card payments market is expected to hit R2.9 trillion ($159 billion) in 2025, and Stitch is positioning itself as the backbone of this booming sector.
By acquiring Efficacy, Stitch joins an exclusive club; only a handful of fintechs, like Adumo, can process cards end-to-end in South Africa.
This move not only strengthens Stitch’s grip on the local market but also sets the stage for pan-African expansion, where fragmented payment systems cry out for innovation.
The Road Ahead
Stitch’s story is one of relentless growth. From its 2021 debut to raising $107 million and taking up two major players in 2025, it’s clear this Cape Town-based fintech isn’t slowing down.
With Efficacy’s tech and DCSP status, Stitch is set to redefine how merchants handle payments, making transactions faster, cheaper, and smarter.
Ronnie Paul is a seasoned writer and analyst with a prolific portfolio of over 1,000 published articles, specialising in fintech, cryptocurrency, and digital finance at Africa Digest News.
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