EdfaPay, the Saudi payment technology company, and GoPravo, a Sudanese IT company, have officially launched the joint venture, SDPay, to provide and operate financial services and payments infrastructure in Sudan.
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The new entity is a 50/50 joint venture between EdfaPay and GoPravo, with a focus on serving banks, telecom operators, merchants, government entities, and individuals across Sudan by harnessing the Saudi fintech developed by EdfaPay and the local expertise in the Sudanese market from GoPravo.
SDPay aims to enable merchants to accept payments and improve customer acquisition by providing easy payment options, particularly through QR codes, point-of-sale (POS) devices, and payment processing, alongside providing online payment gateways. It will also provide digital wallet, banking services, account aggregation solutions, and financial management for customers. Additionally, it will enable customers to issue payment cards and provide Processing-as-a-Service (PaaS).
The company will also provide bill payment and government collection services, integration with payroll disbursement platforms, and international cross-border remittance services, while enabling the government sector with various services ranging from digital payments infrastructure to embedded finance solutions and others.
Commenting on the SDPay’s launch, Ghormallah AlGhamdi, Chairman of SDPay and CEO of EdfaPay, said: "Sudan has the human talent, widespread mobile penetration, and a need to build a modern payments ecosystem. We are working together, with GoPravo, to deliver infrastructure grounded in international standards, managed and operated from within Sudan."
He added: "Our goal is to enter the market to offer integrated services leveraging technologies and expertise that have already operated under the supervision of a central regulator. This is to make a tangible impact on the lives of people and the business sector, from accelerating a merchant's receipt of their payments to reducing the cost of remittances reaching beneficiary families."
Enhancing the Banking Ecosystem and Payments Infrastructure
SDPay seeks to empower clients with integrated and secure services to manage their businesses, offering integration via APIs, digital identity integration, and electronic Know Your Customer (eKYC) verification, alongside fraud monitoring and risk management systems, 3D Secure authentication solutions, financial settlement and reconciliation services, as well as financial analytics and reporting platforms.
Commenting on the new venture, Mohamed Elhag, CEO of SDPay, said: "Sudan has sustained demand for digital financial services, but the challenge lies in integration. Banks, e-wallets, telecom operators, and government collection systems often operate on separate systems, which highlights the need for a shared infrastructure that connects them. Here comes the role of SDPay to combine the technology platform and the regulatory and engineering expertise provided by EdfaPay with the local market knowledge, licenses, relationships, and execution capabilities provided by GoPravo. This integration forms the foundation for building a connected digital financial ecosystem through a registered and capitalized company headquartered in Khartoum."