OPay halts $4B NYSE IPO over foreign regulatory inquiry, shares won't trade as planned

OPay called off its New York Stock Exchange listing yesterday after a regulatory inquiry in an undisclosed foreign jurisdiction prompted the fintech and its underwriters to mutually terminate their agreement dated October 29. The $19-per-ADS offering, which valued the company at roughly $4 billion, had been set to debut under ticker OPAY with 16 million American Depositary Shares. Citigroup, Deutsche Bank, Standard Bank and China International Capital Corporation led the deal.

The halt is a significant setback for what would have been one of the largest African tech IPOs on the NYSE. OPay processed $358 billion in gross transaction value last year—more than double the prior year's $166.2 billion—and grew monthly active users to 39.3 million from 25.1 million. A planned secondary listing on the Nigerian Exchange, approved by the board in October, now waits on the primary NYSE listing.

OPay insists the inquiry is immaterial to its core operations and unrelated to its financial health, operational integrity or regulatory standing in any market. Services continue normally across Nigeria, Indonesia, Egypt and Pakistan. The company held $532.9 million in short-term investments as of June 30, much of it managed by Nigerian asset managers.

With the IPO on ice, the question becomes whether other Nigerian tech champions will still pursue international listings—or if this signals a shift toward domestic capital markets first. OPay says it will provide updates when material developments occur.

SOURCE: https://nairametrics.com/2026/10/31/why-opay-ipo-sale-was-halted-after-debut-on-nyse/