The fintech company had announced the leadership transition as part of a broader restructuring aimed at driving its next growth phase across Africa.

Tayo Oviosu transitioned into the role of Group CEO to focus on expansion into new markets, artificial intelligence, stablecoins, and digital financial infrastructure.

The development followed a strong performance period for the company, which disclosed that it processed $11 billion across 169 million transactions in 2025 alone.

However, beneath the congratulatory messages on Facebook, several users used the opportunity to express frustration over unresolved transaction issues, delayed reversals, and what they described as poor customer service experiences.

Many commenters claimed they had experienced failed transactions or account-related problems that allegedly remained unresolved for extended periods.

One Facebook user, identified as Nnanna Onyedikachi, wrote that he had stopped using the platform due to repeated transaction challenges and difficulty reaching customer support.

Another commenter, Maryann Eze, alleged that funds deducted from her account during a failed transaction were not reversed promptly despite multiple complaints to customer care.

Similarly, Abdul Rasheed accused the company of responding slowly to customer complaints, stating that digital payment platforms should prioritize dispute resolution and transparency.

Olatunji Samuel expressed frustration over the core functionality of the app, stating,

“Your network is very bad, I have been trying to perform a transaction since yesterday and it’s not going through.”

The difficulty in reaching human support was a recurring theme. Ifeanyi Okeke noted,

“Paga used to be the best, but now getting across to customer care is like passing through a needle’s eye. My funds have been hung for three days.”

Blessing Adebayo highlighted the anxiety of missing funds, commenting,

“Congratulations to the new CEO, but please tell your team to refund my 15,000 Naira. The transaction failed but I was debited, and your bot is not helping matters.”

Reflecting a shift in loyalty, Musa Ibrahim wrote,

“I have been using Paga for 5 years, but the recent frequent downtimes are making me look for alternatives. You guys need to fix the engine, not just change the drivers.”

Some users also criticized what they described as automated customer support systems that make it difficult to escalate urgent issues to human representatives.

Others questioned why fintech companies continue to expand aggressively while unresolved customer complaints persist on social media platforms.

The reactions highlight a growing challenge facing Nigeria’s fast-growing fintech ecosystem: balancing rapid expansion with customer trust and service reliability.

Over the past decade, fintech platforms have transformed digital payments and financial inclusion across Nigeria, processing billions of naira in daily transactions. Yet, customer complaints around failed transfers, delayed reversals, frozen accounts, and poor complaint resolution continue to generate public concern.

For Paga, the backlash comes at a critical moment as the company positions itself for a broader continental expansion strategy.

The company recently described its “Act 2” growth phase as one focused on deepening Africa’s financial infrastructure, expanding into new African markets, and investing in emerging technologies.

Industry analysts note that as fintech companies scale, customer experience and trust management are becoming just as important as transaction growth metrics and valuation milestones.

While many users acknowledged Paga’s role in advancing digital payments and financial access in Nigeria, the reactions on social media suggest that unresolved service complaints can quickly overshadow corporate achievements.

As of the time of filing this report, Paga had not publicly responded to the specific customer complaints raised under the Facebook announcement post.

The changes mark the close of a transformative first chapter and the formal launch of Act 2: an ambitious phase defined by deepening Paga’s infrastructure to connect Africans to global financial rails and commerce, new technology frontiers, and geographic expansion across the African continent.

The Paga of today is fundamentally different from the company that launched in 2009. What began as a consumer payments business built on a nationwide agent network has evolved into a full-stack financial services infrastructure provider, offering its platform to enterprises through Paga Engine, while continuing to serve consumers through the Paga app and merchants through Doroki.

Act 1 closed with a formidable track record:

• Total value processed grew 17x between 2021 and 2025, reaching $11 billion across 169 million transactions in 2025 alone, equivalent to over $1.5 billion processed monthly.

• Net revenues grew 5x over the same period, demonstrating the durability and scalability of the business model.

• Over 265 active blue-chip enterprise clients now build on Paga Engine, including PayPal, Meta, Amazon, LemFi, Tencent, Pesa, and Verto.

• Recognised by the Financial Times and Statista as one of Africa’s Fastest Growing Companies for three consecutive years: 2023, 2024, and 2025.

Act 2 is built on three strategic imperatives: deepening Paga’s financial infrastructure offering to connect Africans to both local and global financial rails; launching and scaling emerging technologies from Paga Labs, including stablecoins, cryptocurrency, and artificial intelligence; and entering new African markets where Paga’s infrastructure will deliver the greatest impact.

Paga Labs serves as the company’s dedicated engine for frontier innovation, identifying emerging technologies, bringing them to market-readiness, and integrating them into Paga’s core offering at the right moment.

It reflects Paga’s conviction that the next decade of African finance will be shaped by new forms of money movement, and that the company is uniquely positioned to lead that shift.

In order to execute Act 2 with the speed and focus it demands, Paga Group is fully operationalising its Group structure and announcing the following leadership appointments:

Tayo Oviosu, group chief executive officer & chairman of the Group Board and the Paga Nigeria Board

Paga’s founder will focus exclusively on the group’s expansion priorities: leading Paga Labs – its work on stablecoins, AI, and cryptocurrency; spearheading new market entry across Africa; and driving fundraising. Oviosu retains his roles as Group CEO and Chairman of both the Group Board and the Paga Nigeria Board.

Jay Alabraba, group director of Special Projects

Co-founder Jay Alabraba takes on a new mandate as Group Director of Special Projects, initially leading the company’s expansion into lending and collaborating with Oviosu on new market entry.

The role reflects Paga’s intent to pursue select high-impact opportunities with dedicated senior focus.

Ope Oyinloye, group chief operating officer & CEO, Paga Nigeria

With seven years at Paga, Oyinloye steps into the newly created role of Group COO with responsibility for all of Paga’s established businesses.

He also assumes the role of CEO of Paga Nigeria in an acting capacity, pending CBN No-Objection. His appointment reflects Paga’s confidence in the leadership depth it has built over the past decade.

“Seventeen years ago, we set out to make it simple for a billion people to access and use money. That mission has never changed, but what we are building to fulfil it keeps evolving. Act 1 proved that we could build a profitable, high-growth infrastructure business that the world’s leading companies trust. Act 2 is about taking that infrastructure to its full potential: connecting Africans to global financial rails, moving into new markets, and leading the next wave of financial technology. These leadership changes give us the structure and focus to move faster and execute at the level this moment demands,” said Tayo Oviosu, group chief executive officer & chairman, Paga Group.

“Paga has spent seventeen years becoming the kind of company that makes things work quietly and at scale. That is exactly the competency Act 2 requires. I am honoured to step into the Group Chief Operating Officer role at such a pivotal moment, and committed to maintaining the operational excellence and client trust that define Paga, while helping the business grow into its next chapter.” said Ope Oyinloye, the incoming group COO &  CEO, Paga Nigeria.