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Optasia Ltd., the AI-driven microfinance platform built by Lebanese-Nigerian entrepreneur Bassim Haidar, gained on its first day of trading in Johannesburg after pricing at the top of the range, adding a rare high-growth tech name to a market short on fresh listings.
The stock closed at R19.38 ($1.11) versus the R19.00 ($1.08) offer, giving Optasia a closing market value of about R23.94 billion ($1.37 billion) on 1,235,061,843 shares outstanding. At the offer price, the implied market cap was roughly R23.47 billion ($1.34 billion). The float combined a primary raise to fund expansion with a secondary sell-down by early backers, drawing interest from local and international funds.
For Haidar, the debut crystallizes more than a decade of work. Through BH Holdings Limited, he owns 19.01% of Optasia — a 0.90% direct holding and 18.11% held indirectly via 100%-owned Zoey Enterprises — which equates to 234.79 million shares (direct 11.12 million; indirect 223.67 million). Marked to the close, the stake is worth around R4.55 billion ($259.6 million).
Optasia sits at the intersection of telecom networks and finance. Optasia uses alternative data and machine-learning models to score and extend nano-loans and airtime advances via mobile operators and banks, taking a fee on each transaction. Investors are betting that scale and disciplined risk management can convert small-ticket credit into robust, cash-generative returns across multiple emerging markets.
The debut is also a win for the Johannesburg Stock Exchange, which has struggled to attract tech flotations amid global risk aversion and a busy private-capital market. For Optasia, a public currency and fresh capital open room to accelerate product rollouts, deepen ties with carriers and lenders, and pursue selective acquisitions without sacrificing profitability discipline. Haidar — who founded the business in 2012 when it was known as Channel VAS — remains central to strategy even as Optasia broadens its leadership bench.
