Revio: Streamlining Payment Operations and Reducing Failures in African Markets

Revio, a payment orchestration platform based in South Africa, is gaining momentum in addressing payment failures across Africa by simplifying payment processes for merchants.

After a successful seed funding round of US$5.2 million, the company has ambitious expansion plans.

Revio's platform streamlines payment operations for merchants, making it easier to reach and retain a wider customer base while reducing complexity, cost, and risk.

The platform is now operational in over 25 African markets and offers access to over 70 payment methods, configurable routing and retry rules, and dynamic customer engagement throughout the payment process via a single PCI-compliant platform and API.

Established in 2020 and officially launched in 2021, Revio aims to enhance its capabilities and extend its reach across Africa with the recent funding injection, building on a previous funding round of US$1.1 million.

Co-founder and CEO Ruaan Botha initiated the venture after recognizing the considerable time and manual effort businesses allocate to payment operations, particularly in managing unsuccessful payments.

In discussions with over 30 clients, it became evident that a significant portion of investment for improving their payment systems would be directed towards better management of payment failures and customer retention.

"Through a single API, Revio offers transparency into merchants' payment stacks and optimizes revenue operations using data-driven recovery workflows," Botha stated. "The team consolidates and enhances digital payment methods through intelligent orchestration, including configurable transaction routing, automated failover, and intelligent retries. This distinctive platform positioning allows Revio to collaborate rather than compete with payment gateways, providing access to previously untapped customer segments," Botha told Disrupt Africa.

The company has established a clientele that includes four of Africa's major insurers, two leading telcos, and has forged a strategic partnership with a tier-one African bank to extend its services to enterprise and mid-size clients.

Notable clients include Old Mutual, Standard Bank, MTN aYo, and Innovation Group.

"South Africa remains our primary market, where the majority of our current clients are situated. We have been fortunate to expand our services to new markets, including Nigeria, Zambia, Namibia, Botswana, and Ivory Coast, with some of our multinational clients. We are aware that payment failures pose a significant challenge in markets like Nigeria and Ghana, and we are eager to extend our solutions to these regions," Botha added.

Revio's business model encompasses multiple revenue streams aligned with client value creation, focusing on getting paid and revenue recovery.

"Clients pay a platform fee and transactional fees based on the success rate we assist them in achieving. Our net revenue has experienced a 1,000 percent year-on-year growth, demonstrating healthy unit economics and an increase in average contract value," Botha mentioned.

"Payment orchestration is a relatively emerging concept, particularly in emerging markets. We have had to refine our market positioning and sales messaging to effectively resonate with prospective clients. There is still work to be done in this aspect, but the trust of our current clients, coupled with this infusion of capital, should enable us to invest in appropriate market education and expedite our growth."

Tom Jackson / Disrupt Africa