Yoco

Yoco is a South African financial-technology company focused on expanding electronic commerce among small and medium-sized businesses. Headquartered in Cape Town, it combines card-payment hardware, point-of-sale software, online payment tools, and merchant finance in a platform designed for businesses that have traditionally been underserved by banks and conventional payment providers. The company was founded in 2014 by Katlego Maphai, Carl Wazen, Bradley Wattrus, and Lungisa Matshoba. The founders were influenced by the emergence of accessible payment platforms such as Square and by the practical difficulty faced by small merchants that wanted to accept cards without adopting complex banking infrastructure. After a preparation period, Yoco processed its first transaction in October 2014. Its initial proposition addressed a significant gap in South Africa: although card ownership was widespread, only a relatively small proportion of smaller sellers accepted card payments. Yoco initially built its customer base through a compact payment solution connected to a smart device. Its growth accelerated during the second half of the 2010s. The company reported about 5,000 customers by the end of 2016, up from approximately 500 a year earlier. In 2018, it raised a Series B round of R224 million, bringing disclosed cumulative funding at that point to R322 million. Around the same time, it served approximately 27,000 merchants and processed billions of rand in annual card sales. The company also broadened its business beyond payments by introducing Yoco Capital, which provides eligible merchants with financing repaid through future transactions. The product portfolio later expanded to include standalone terminals, including the Yoco Neo, launched in 2020, and touchscreen devices such as Neo Touch and the locally designed, assembled, and packaged Khumo terminal. Yoco also developed a point-of-sale console and online-payment capabilities, allowing merchants to manage in-person and digital sales through a connected platform. In 2021, its devices became available through major South African retail chains including Builders Warehouse and Makro, increasing access beyond Yoco's direct online channel. Yoco's 2021 Series C financing of R1.23 billion was described as the largest single investment raised by a South African payments company at that time and one of the largest such financings in Africa. The company positioned the funding as a way to accelerate economic participation for small businesses in South Africa and other African and Middle Eastern markets. Its investor base has included international venture and growth investors such as Dragoneer Investment Group, Partech, Velocity Capital Fintech Ventures, Orange Ventures, Quona Capital, Breyer Capital, HOF Capital, and 4DX Ventures, while Futuregrowth Asset Management became its first South African institutional investor during the Series B round. The company has also pursued partnerships and ecosystem services. In 2023, it partnered with MediaTek to use Genio Internet-of-Things chipsets in the Neo Touch 4G terminal. In 2025, Yoco announced an integration with Xero intended to synchronize sales and payout information with cloud accounting software. It has supported entrepreneurship events, including Yoco Exchange, and has sponsored the Best of the Cape awards while presenting a Yoco's Choice award. In September 2025, founding chief executive Katlego Maphai announced that he would step down from day-to-day leadership after roughly a decade. Co-founders Lungisa Matshoba and Bradley Wattrus were announced as co-CEOs, while Maphai was expected to remain involved in a founder role. The transition was presented against a changing South African payments market, including bank and fintech acquisitions and new competitive offerings from major financial institutions. As of the supplied 2025 reference material, Yoco had more than 200,000 customers, processed over R34 billion annually through its platform, and had raised more than R1.7 billion in funding. These figures and the company's reported valuation are time-specific and should not be treated as permanent corporate metrics.

Yoco emerged from the founders' observation that small merchants needed a simpler way to accept electronic payments. Katlego Maphai, Carl Wazen, Bradley Wattrus, and Lungisa Matshoba founded the company in South Africa in 2014 after drawing inspiration from the accessibility of payment companies such as Square. Maphai also recalled encountering an improvised electronic-payment arrangement at a restaurant in Silicon Valley, an experience that helped illustrate the opportunity for a more practical merchant solution. The founders spent approximately two years preparing the business, and Yoco processed its first transaction in October 2014. Its early model connected a card reader and software to the needs of independent businesses, avoiding the complexity and cost commonly associated with traditional merchant-acquiring arrangements. The company argued that South Africa had a substantial mismatch between consumer card ownership and merchant acceptance: millions of people held bank cards, while only a small minority of sellers accepted them. Yoco's early growth was rapid. At the end of 2016, it reported roughly 5,000 customers, compared with around 500 in 2015. A visit by Western Cape Premier Alan Winde to Yoco's Cape Town headquarters in March 2016 highlighted the company as an example of local entrepreneurial innovation. At that time, the business reportedly employed 24 people, served about 1,000 clients, and processed approximately R300 million in annual transactions. In 2018, Yoco raised R224 million in Series B funding, bringing reported cumulative funding to R322 million. The company then served approximately 27,000 merchants, was adding around 1,500 merchants per month, and processed roughly R3.5 billion in annual card sales. The same year saw the creation of Yoco Capital, a financing service intended to help merchants invest in their businesses. Repayment was structured through the merchants' future transaction activity rather than through a conventional fixed installment model. By September 2019, Yoco said it had provided R55 million in loans in less than a year and that only 2% of participating businesses had defaulted. The hardware platform developed alongside the merchant network. In October 2020, Yoco launched the Neo, its first standalone card machine that did not require a separate smart device or Bluetooth connection. In 2021, the company announced a R1.23 billion Series C financing round. It characterized the transaction as the largest single investment raised by a South African payments company and among the largest payments investments in Africa. Yoco used the growth opportunity to widen access to its devices, including sales through Builders Warehouse and Makro. It also described a large unmet market across South Africa, Africa, and the Middle East, where many small businesses continued to operate primarily with cash. The company continued to extend its technology and ecosystem. Its Khumo terminal was designed, assembled, and packaged in South Africa. In December 2023, Yoco partnered with MediaTek to source Genio IoT chipsets for the Neo Touch 4G device. In 2025, an integration with Xero was announced to automatically move Yoco sales and payout information into Xero's cloud accounting environment, linking payment acceptance with bookkeeping. Yoco has also built a community and brand-marketing layer around its merchant base. It hosts Yoco Exchange, an annual gathering for entrepreneurs featuring networking, talks, and workshops. It sponsors the Best of the Cape awards and presents a Yoco's Choice award connected with public recognition of Cape Town establishments. Leadership changed in September 2025, when co-founder and CEO Katlego Maphai announced that he would leave the chief-executive position after about ten years. He cited major changes in the South African payments landscape, including acquisitions involving competitors and new payment products from large banks, as reasons for bringing new skills into the next phase of growth. Co-founders Lungisa Matshoba and Bradley Wattrus became co-CEOs, while Maphai remained associated with the company as a founder focused on longer-term projects. The supplied reference material states that, by 2025, Yoco had more than 200,000 customers, processed over R34 billion per year through its platform, and had raised more than R1.7 billion. These are reported period-specific figures rather than timeless attributes. A 2026 product expansion added a subscription-based loyalty service, allowing merchants to operate card-linked rewards programs through the Yoco application and terminals.

• 2026

  Loyalty subscription launches

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco introduced a subscription service for merchant-managed, card-linked loyalty programs.

• 2025

  Xero integration and leadership transition

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco announced a payments-to-accounting integration with Xero and replaced Katlego Maphai as CEO with co-CEOs Lungisa Matshoba and Bradley Wattrus.

• 2023

  MediaTek hardware partnership

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco partnered with MediaTek to use Genio IoT chipsets in its Neo Touch 4G terminal.

• 2021

  Series C funding and retail distribution

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco announced a R1.23 billion Series C round and expanded terminal distribution through major South African retail chains.

• 2020

  Yoco Neo launches

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  The company released its first standalone card terminal that did not need a separate smart device or Bluetooth connection.

• 2018

  Yoco Capital launches and Series B closes

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco introduced merchant financing and raised R224 million in Series B funding.

• 2016

  Early merchant expansion

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Yoco reported approximately 5,000 customers by the end of the year, compared with about 500 in 2015.

• 2014

  Yoco is founded and processes its first transaction

  [1]Yocoen.wikipedia.org

  Katlego Maphai, Carl Wazen, Bradley Wattrus, and Lungisa Matshoba founded Yoco. After a preparation period, the company completed its first transaction in October.

A merchant-focused fintech platform making card acceptance, point-of-sale management, online payments, and growth finance more accessible to small and medium-sized businesses.

• Standalone card terminal · 2020

  Yoco Neo

  Yoco Neo is a standalone payment machine introduced in 2020. Unlike Yoco's earlier device model, it was designed to accept payments without depending on a separate smartphone or Bluetooth connection, making it more suitable for merchants seeking a self-contained checkout device.

• Touchscreen card terminal

  Yoco Neo Touch 4G

  Neo Touch 4G is a touchscreen payment terminal within Yoco's hardware range. Its design incorporates cellular connectivity and MediaTek Genio IoT chipsets, supporting payment acceptance in merchant environments where a separate phone or local wireless connection is not the preferred operating model.

• Payment terminal

  Yoco Khumo

  Khumo is a Yoco payment terminal designed, assembled, and packaged in South Africa. It forms part of the company's effort to provide locally relevant card-acceptance hardware for independent merchants and small businesses.

• Point-of-sale software

  Yoco point-of-sale platform

  Yoco's point-of-sale offering combines payment acceptance with tools for managing sales at a physical business. It is intended to give small and medium-sized merchants a simpler operational layer around checkout, transaction records, and related business activity.

• Merchant finance · 2018

  Yoco Capital

  Yoco Capital provides eligible merchants with financing intended for business growth. Repayment is linked to the merchant's future Yoco transactions, allowing the financing model to align repayment with sales activity rather than relying solely on a conventional fixed repayment schedule.

• Online payment service

  Yoco online payments

  Yoco's online-payment capability extends its merchant platform beyond physical terminals, enabling businesses to receive electronic payments through digital channels and connect those transactions with their broader Yoco activity.

• Customer loyalty software · 2026

  Yoco loyalty subscription

  Launched in 2026 according to the supplied reference, the loyalty subscription lets merchants establish and manage card-linked rewards programs in the Yoco app. Payments made on Yoco terminals can generate loyalty points for returning customers.

• Yoco Exchange

  South Africa

  Yoco hosts an annual entrepreneurship event providing small-business owners with networking opportunities, talks, and workshops.

  Outcome. The event supports merchant education and community-building around Yoco's small-business ecosystem.

  Source
• Best of the Cape sponsorship

  Cape Town · South Africa

  Yoco sponsors the annual Best of the Cape awards and presents a Yoco's Choice award recognizing a local establishment.

  Outcome. The sponsorship associates Yoco with independent businesses and public recognition of Cape Town merchants.

  Source

• 2025

  Leadership transitionStrategy

  Background

  Yoco's CEO cited major changes in South Africa's payments market, including bank acquisitions, fintech consolidation, and new offerings from large banks.

  Action taken

  Katlego Maphai stepped down as CEO, while Lungisa Matshoba and Bradley Wattrus became co-CEOs. Maphai remained involved in a founder capacity.

  Aftermath

  The transition was intended to bring additional skills to the company's next phase of scaling.

  Source

• 2021

  Expansion of physical terminal distributionStrategy

  Background

  Yoco wanted to make its payment machines available beyond its direct online sales channel.

  Action taken

  It began distributing card machines through major South African retail chains including Builders Warehouse and Makro.

  Aftermath

  The move broadened consumer and merchant access to Yoco hardware.

  Source

• 2021

  Series C growth investmentStrategy

  Background

  Yoco identified a substantial gap between consumer demand for electronic payments and small-business access to viable acceptance tools.

  Action taken

  The company raised R1.23 billion in Series C funding to accelerate access for small businesses in its target regions.

  Aftermath

  Yoco described the financing as a landmark South African payments investment and continued expanding its platform and hardware range.

  Series C funding. R1.23 billion (2021)

  Source

• 2018

  Launch of Yoco CapitalProduct launch

  Background

  Yoco sought to address the financing needs of small businesses already using its payment platform.

  Action taken

  It introduced financing that could be used for business growth and repaid through future transactions.

  Aftermath

  By September 2019, Yoco said it had granted R55 million in loans in under a year, with a reported 2% default rate.

  Merchant loans granted. R55 million (Less than one year by September 2019)

  Source

• 2020-01-30

  Heavy Chef partners with Yoco for Yoco Exchange[2]Heavy Chef与Yoco合作举办Yoco Exchangethemediaonline.co.za

  Reported: 2020-01-30

  Heavy Chef became the official partner for Yoco Exchange, a small-business summit scheduled to take place in Johannesburg on 14 March 2020.

1. 1Yocoen.wikipedia.org
2. 2Heavy Chef与Yoco合作举办Yoco Exchangethemediaonline.co.za