Blog » Payfast is now Network

Payfast is now Network

We would like to introduce you to the bigger, better, faster, smarter us. We’ve officially rebranded to Network International, and are ready to provide South African businesses of all sizes with even more opportunities to grow their business and prosper in the digital economy. To reiterate, Payfast is no longer by Network; we are Network. The name Payfast remains as an ecommerce solution offered by Network. 

Payfast’s maturation under Network  

Network International acquired Payfast in 2021 and is the leading enabler of digital commerce in the Middle East and Africa (MEA) region. With over 30 years of experience in delivering innovative solutions that drive revenue and profitability for their customers, Network has grown from strength to strength to become the largest acquirer in the UAE and offers a full suite of technology-enabled payments solutions to merchants and financial institutions of all types and sizes, enriched by an ever-evolving range of value-added services. 

When Payfast joined the Network family, we initiated a brand-strengthening exercise that involved Payfast merging with Paygate and SiD under the reimagined Payfast brand. This enabled us to combine our Aggregator and Gateway payment solutions under one product offering to ensure we offer the best and most comprehensive online payment platform in South Africa. 

In this latest stage of our development as Network, our collective vision is to strengthen our local offering by providing access to global expertise, resources and capabilities – ushering in a new era of unified payments innovation in South Africa. This will enable our merchants to provide their customers with the fastest, most frictionless payment experience possible. 

As Network we offer bigger, faster, smarter and better capabilities 

Payfast becoming an ecommerce product of Network won’t impact our existing merchants’ payment processing services, or how they use Payfast to manage their businesses, in any way. We continue offering a world-class localised service from our Cape Town and Johannesburg offices.  

With the backing of Network, we can now offer our merchants new and previously unimagined value-added payment solutions, services and capabilities. We’ve always been seen as a leader in the local payments space – now we have the increased speed, scale and strength to go even bigger.  

What to expect from Payfast becoming an ecommerce solution of Network 

We’re excited about our brand’s maturation under Network, and you should be too. Here are some of the imminent changes to take note of: 

.network.global email domain 

As we’ve already communicated to our merchants, we’ve started updating our email domains from @payfast.io to @network.global. This forms part of our efforts to streamline our communication channels and present a unified identity as part of the Network family. Find out more about our email domain change here in our FAQs

Transitioning look and feel 

You’ll start noticing our updated Payfast-as-a-Network-solution logo, which now includes the Network Chevron. Secondly, you’ll start seeing our colour scheme transitioning to be more aligned with Network, ie becoming more blue. This will be predominantly visible on our website, email communication, social media pages, Payfast Dashboard and payment page. While we may be getting a new look, we assure you we have the same heart. 

Payfast website domain 

For now, our website domain will remain payfast.io. When this changes, we’ll communicate any updates to our merchants via our usual communication channels: email, notifications on the Payfast Dashboard and social posts.   

Our increased capabilities as part of a large, global organisation and leading enabler of digital commerce in Africa and the Middle East means we can enable you, our merchants, to grow with us. If you would like to find out more about our rebrand to Network, check out this press release or refer to our Knowledge Base