Semoa Turns 10 as It Becomes First in Togo to Receive BCEAO “Full Service” Payment License

ITC

Sunday, 01 February 2026 15:32

Semoa Turns 10 as It Becomes First in Togo to Receive BCEAO “Full Service” Payment License

(Togo First) - Semoa Group, a digital solutions provider, has reached a major milestone in Togo’s startup sector after receiving a Level 3 accreditation from the Central Bank of West African States (BCEAO). The approval, the first of its kind for a company in Togo, comes as the startup marks its 10th year of operations.

The announcement was made by the company’s top management, including CEO Edem Adjamagbo and director Eudes Gbessi, during a meeting at its headquarters in Lomé on Friday, Jan. 29, 2026.

10 years: facts and figures

Founded in 2016 by Togolese engineer Edem Adjamagbo, Semoa emerged during a period of strong entrepreneurial growth in Togo. The company positioned itself in the fintech sector, focusing on digital payments and cashless solutions.

Two years later, Adjamagbo, who gained recognition among fintech entrepreneurs in Lomé, expanded operations across Africa. He received two prestigious awards in Casablanca, Morocco, including “Startup of the Year 2018.”

While Semoa has expanded its activities in Togo, it has also signed partnerships with state and private institutions. The company has more than 330 partnerships, broadening its client portfolio to include over 20 financial institutions, such as Ecobank, Orabank, and Cofina. Adjamagbo is working to extend operations beyond the country.

Four new Semoa subsidiaries have gradually been established in Benin, Guinea, Côte d’Ivoire, and Senegal. These subsidiaries reflect the African ambitions of the Togolese entrepreneur.

The company offers products such as WhatsApp Banking and Semoa Pro, a payment switch that enables system interoperability for single and mass payments. It also provides Cashpay, a multimodal platform that centralizes payment methods including credit cards, mobile money, and wallets to process online or point-of-sale payments.

In addition, it offers the Voucher Management System, a platform for generating standardized tickets, tax stamps, and tamper-proof, fully secure codes.

Since 2016, more than 4 million transactions have been processed, with over 552,000 beneficiaries and more than 161 million euros in processed flows.

The CEO said Semoa’s track record includes several solutions, starting with digital cards and electronic payments before introducing WhatsApp banking.

In Togo, WhatsApp banking has enabled around 300,000 people so far to carry out banking operations without visiting a branch. Adjamagbo said the impact of these innovations on the population is at the heart of Semoa Group’s 10-year review.

A BCEAO “full service” payment institution license

The company, which has ambitions across Africa, is strengthening its regulatory and compliance position after securing its BCEAO payment institution license on Jan. 27, 2026. This Level 3 accreditation, a first in Togo, is the result of years of sustained effort.

It will allow Semoa to provide the full range of payment institution services, including money transfers.

“This is a full PSP (Payment Service Provider) agreement, the most complete for a payment institution. It allows us to do ten times, or even a hundred times more in Togo than what we have done until now,” the CEO said.

Adjamagbo noted that Semoa had voluntarily limited itself to certain activities for compliance reasons. The company can now legally operate in the cross-border transfer segment as well as all other digital finance segments.

The ultimate ambition is to become an African leader in payments and payment services.

S.A

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