African fintech giant Interswitch has returned to profitability, posting a pre-tax profit of ₦23 billion in 2025 after recording a ₦1.6 billion loss the previous year.
The strong recovery signals improved operational performance and reinforces the company’s position as one of Nigeria’s leading digital payments providers. However, the latest financial results also reveal that more than 90% of Interswitch’s ₦137 billion revenue still comes from Nigeria, highlighting the company’s continued dependence on its home market despite its pan-African ambitions.
The turnaround reflects stronger performance across Interswitch’s payments infrastructure business, which powers banking, commerce and government payment services across Nigeria. Its Verve card scheme also continues to expand its footprint across several African markets.
While returning to profitability is a significant milestone, the company’s revenue concentration raises broader questions about the challenges of scaling fintech businesses across Africa.
Operating in multiple African markets requires navigating different regulatory environments, payment systems, banking relationships and consumer behaviours, making regional expansion more complex than simply replicating a successful domestic model.
For Interswitch, Nigeria remains both its greatest strength and its biggest exposure. The country’s growing digital payments ecosystem provides significant opportunities, but it also leaves the company vulnerable to macroeconomic challenges such as inflation, currency volatility and regulatory changes.
The renewed profitability gives Interswitch greater financial flexibility to invest in future growth while strengthening its expansion strategy across other African markets.
As competition in Africa’s fintech industry continues to intensify, the company’s next challenge will be reducing its dependence on Nigeria by building stronger revenue streams across the continent.
