WiPay Jamaica, a part of the WiPay Holdings group, yesterday announced the historic partnership between Republic Bank and WiPay Holdings, where Republic Bank has agreed to acquire a 19.99 per cent stake in WiPay Holdings’ subsidiary, Nobis BaaS.

This agreement would allow the WiPay group to expand rapidly to territories in which Republic Bank currently operates. These include countries throughout the Caribbean such as the Cayman Islands and Suriname to as far as Ghana in the African continent.

WiPay Jamaica congratulated the companies on this transaction as it looks forward to the value it will bring to the WiPay group, and Jamaica in particular.

As Republic Bank continues to boost its digital portfolio and bring first-to-market payment solutions to an increasingly digital consumer, this move is part of Republic Bank’s strategy to accelerate its efforts towards digital transformation, and it is an example of how FinTech firms and banks worldwide are revolutionising the global financial ecosystem together.

WiPay Jamaica, launched its platform in Jamaica earlier this year, at the newly opened AC Marriott Hotel. It is a technology solutions company that provides software services to regulated financial institutions in Jamaica that will help simplify e-commerce for micro, small, medium and large enterprises.

With the Jamaican Government’s increased focus on building a modern economy through digital payments, Jamaica is making good headway towards developing the right ecosystem for economic growth through e-commerce. With increasing access to the Internet, the demand for online purchasing is growing, and more and more businesses are moving to e-stores from brick-and-mortar outlets in order to reach a wider market.

In existing territories, WiPay allows businesses to make and receive payments online by simply downloading the WiPay plug-in for free and integrating it on to their website. Alternatively, if a company does not have a website, it can simply use WiPay’s soon-to-be-released, all-in-one invoicing, payment and delivery mobile app, Zwillo.

Group CEO of WiPay Aldwyn Wayne said, “WiPay is committed to working with organisations to bring unprecedented levels of financial inclusion and customer-centric innovation to Jamaica and the wider Caribbean. Our technology brings added ease, convenience, and security to payments on a wider scale, for both public and private sector organisations. This investment will accelerate our regional growth and the transformation of the digital landscape in Jamaica and the region.”