Paystack has unveiled a new app called Zap, marking the company’s first product aimed directly at consumers since it launched in 2016.
The announcement was made by Paystack CEO, Sola Akinlade, during a special event on Monday.
Zap is designed to simplify bank transfers in Nigeria by allowing users to send money quickly and without hassle.
Unlike some financial apps that operate as digital banks, Zap lets users link their existing traditional bank accounts instead of creating new ones.
However, accounts from microfinance banks like OPay, PalmPay, and Moniepoint cannot be linked at this time.
According to Akinlade, the main goal of Zap is to complete bank transfers in under 30 seconds, making it faster than most existing banking apps.
The app also offers users the ability to link multiple bank accounts while maintaining a Paystack-Titan account.
This allows them to fund the Paystack-Titan account directly through instant transfers without switching between multiple apps.
This feature aims to streamline the transfer process for users seeking speed and simplicity.
Zap isn’t just for Nigerians at home. Foreigners in Nigeria can also send money to local bank accounts through the platform.
In a live demonstration during the event, Akinlade transferred money from a Bank of America account to a Nigerian account to show how Zap works.
While Zap focuses only on bank transfers, some industry watchers believe it could compete with neo-banks due to its ease of use and potential for customer acquisition.
By allowing users to stick with their existing bank accounts, Zap may attract a wider audience looking for faster payment solutions.
At the launch event, Paystack also shared details about its recent performance. In the final quarter of 2024, the company processed three billion API requests and experienced less than ten minutes of downtime.
These numbers reflect Paystack’s continued growth in the payment gateway space, where it initially built its reputation.
With Zap, Paystack is entering the business-to-consumer (B2C) space after years of focusing on business-to-business (B2B) services. Some see this as a move similar to Moniepoint’s expansion into retail banking, which has been
