Oobit, a leading mobile payment app that enables seamless in-store and online crypto payments, has announced its launch in South Africa. Available on both iOS and Android, the app is designed to deliver simple and seamless crypto payments, leveraging Visa rails to deliver the same experience as Apple Pay.
Oobit allows users to pay with crypto, while merchants receive fiat currency. The app handles the complex aspects of the settlement behind the scenes, with users retaining full control of the process from custody to payment.
The company’s entry in South Africa is part of its global expansion strategy that targets key markets in various regions. Last month, Oobit opened its first office in Brazil, establishing a strategic position in one of Latin America’s biggest markets.
It is also now in Thailand, again a country that is strategically positioned, both as an emerging economy and a gateway to Southeast Asia markets, while its recent entry into the Philippines gives it access to far East Asia.
By opening operations in South Africa, Oobit is again tapping into one of the fastest-growing fintech hubs in the world, and the biggest one in Africa. After a significant slowdown in fintech startup funding in Africa between 2022 and 2024, the continent witnessed significant growth in the first half of 2025.
According to a report by Further Africa, fintech funding rose to $640 million between January and July 2025. The continent alongside Europe is among those that witnessed signs of recovery after the preceding 3-year downturn.
Earlier in 2025, a KPMG report highlighted payments as the most sought-after segment for investors targeting the fintech space.
The payments space remained the hottest fintech subsector over 2024 by far, attracting $31 billion in investment, followed by digital assets and currencies ($9.1 billion) and regtech ($7.4 billion), the professional services and advisory firm reported.
Oobit’s addressable market appears to encompass the top two segments mentioned by KPMG, which are payments and digital assets and currencies. Backed by Tether, the issuer of the USDT stablecoin, Oobit allows users to pay in crypto and stablecoins, while merchants receive fiat currency.
With USDT already a popular means of payment in South Africa, Oobit is onboarding an already crypto-native user base, whilst opening doors for more growth through universal merchant payments.
“South Africans finally stopped treating wallets like digital piggy banks. Real money gets used. The country has trusted USDT for years, and now they can use it in everyday life,” said Amram Adar, CEO of Oobit.
The move is part of the company’s accelerated strategy to build the future of global payments, with a focus on establishing stablecoins as the standard infrastructure for international transactions.
South Africa enjoys one of the strongest business infrastructures in Africa, built for startups to flourish. The country’s capital markets regulatory body, FSCA, has also identified a gap in the country’s financial ecosystem, highlighting the need for alternative banking methods.
In a recent survey, the FSCA highlighted that DeFi adoption in South Africa is being driven largely by financial inclusion needs, with a third of the population classified as underbanked.
Their 2025 study shows that consumers rely on digital wallets and decentralized solutions to access payments, credit, and investment opportunities that traditional institutions often fail to provide.
