PayU Kenya Shuts Down After Licence Revocation

The Kenyan subsidiary of the global payments firm PayU Kenya Limited has officially ceased operations following the revocation of its licence by the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK. PayU Kenya entered the Kenyan market in 2019 via a partnership with local payments firm Cellulant, aiming to enable card payments, bank-transfers and mobile wallets for online merchants across East Africa.
Despite securing the necessary local licence and organisational set-up, the firm struggled to gain meaningful traction in a mobile-money ecosystem dominated by M‑Pesa and long-standing local players.

In August 2025, PayU Kenya formally entered liquidation proceedings under the Kenyan Insolvency Act, appointing Sonal Tejpal as the liquidator effective 19 August 2025. Shortly afterwards, the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) is reported to have moved to revoke the company’s operating licence, signifying a full exit from operations.

A recent public notice confirms that the CBK has revoked PayU Kenya’s authorisation, effective 13 October 2025. The formal action follows the decision to wind up operations and settle outstanding liabilities. “It is notified for the information of the general public that the Central Bank of Kenya has revoked the authorisation granted to PayU Kenya Limited with effect from the 13th October, 2025.”  Gazetted notice

This regulatory step effectively ends PayU Kenya’s ability to provide payment services in the country. Despite being backed by the Netherlands-based parent PayU BV (owned by Prosus N.V.), PayU Kenya found it hard to compete in a market dominated by mobile-money incumbents. A business analyst reportedly said, “Every SIM card in the country comes with M-Pesa by default, making it almost impossible for alternative payment systems to gain real traction. PayU is simply one of many fintechs that have found themselves on the losing end of this imbalance.”

Their target segment — online merchants — was strategic but limited in size relative to the full Kenyan payments market. Additionally, operational costs, customer acquisition challenges and a complex regulatory environment further eroded their ability to scale.

According to CBK’s actions, the revocation is not a penalty per se, but a regulatory procedure following the firm’s liquidation. PayU Kenya’s exit underscores the steep competitive and regulatory hurdles foreign fintechs face in Kenya. For a company with global ambitions, its withdrawal is significant. “Targeting online merchants was strategically sound, but the segment remains too small and too tightly linked to M-Pesa’s infrastructure to sustain another player.” One commentator observed.

With its licence revoked, PayU Kenya is required to wind up operations under the supervision of a liquidator. The CBK notice instructs the firm to cease providing payment services and settle its obligations to merchants and customers. While PayU remains active in other African markets such as Nigeria and South Africa, its Kenyan chapter has come to a definitive close.