The OPay IPO was withdrawn after the company disclosed a regulatory inquiry in an unnamed foreign jurisdiction. The Nigeria-focused fintech had planned to raise $304 million in the United States. The New York Stock Exchange marked the proposed listing as cancelled.
The digital payments company announced on October 30 that it had priced 16 million American Depositary Shares at $19 each. The shares were expected to trade under the ticker OPAY, and the offering was due to close on November 2. The price implied a valuation of about $4 billion.
Why the OPay IPO was withdrawn
OPay withdrew the offering later on October 30. The company did not identify the regulator or disclose what the inquiry concerned. It said the jurisdiction was immaterial to its core operations and that it expected the matter to be resolved. OPay also said it did not expect the inquiry to affect customer service in Nigeria or its other markets, Reuters reported.
The proposed listing would have given investors on a major US exchange access to a payments business with a large presence in Nigeria. OPay provides services including payments, money transfers, savings and loans. Its prospectus reported about 50 million monthly active users as of July 31.
Before the withdrawal, OPay had outlined plans to use proceeds from the offering and a concurrent private placement to invest in technology, expand its distribution network and develop new products. The withdrawal halted the planned public fundraising.
Sources — New York Stock Exchange, Reuters, OPay’s SEC filing
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