Shola Akinlade has spent a decade building Paystack into a critical piece of Nigerias digital economy, quietly shaping how money moves between businesses and customers. Now, the Nigerian software engineer is steering the Stripe-owned company into a new phase that places small businesses at the center of its ambitions.
With the acquisition of Ladder Microfinance Bank, rebranded as Paystack Microfinance Bank, Akinlade is positioning Paystack to help narrow Nigerias estimated 32 billion financing gap for small and medium-sized businesses that struggle to secure credit from traditional lenders.
The move, announced last week, marks a clear shift for the company Akinlade co-founded in 2015 with Ezra Olubi. What began as a payments gateway is now extending into deposit-taking and lending, expanding Paystacks role from facilitating transactions to offering financial tools that small businesses need to stay afloat and grow.
