Ebene, 12 December 2024 – Leading African payment solution provider Peach Payments is pleased to announce the appointment of Isabelle Apollon as its new Group Head of SME Sales. Isabelle is based in the Mauritius office and reports to Group COO Sandeep Chagger, also based in Mauritius.
Prior to joining Peach Payments, Isabelle was Country Manager for Mauritius and Regional Sales Manager for the Indian Ocean at the DPO Group, a pan-African payment services provider.
A graduate in business administration with a focus on marketing from the University of London International Programmes, Isabelle brings with her a wealth of marketing expertise and industry insights to create and execute effective strategies in the payments space.
Commenting on this significant leadership appointment in Mauritius, Sandeep Chagger, Group Chief Operating Officer, Peach Payments, notes: “This has been a momentous year for Peach Payments’ operations in Mauritius and we are seeing great payments and technology talent in Mauritius. In June, we appointed Uways Kureeman as Country Head and Director for Mauritius, and in October, Isabelle. Besides these two high-level appointments, our workforce in Mauritius has grown to more than 20 people, doubling in a year,” Sandeep says.
“Isabelle’s appointment allows us to target the small and medium enterprises in Africa, which we classify as our growth sector, from here. Her team will operate across the other African countries where we have a presence.”
According to the World Economic Forum, small and medium businesses (SMEs) account for 95% of all registered businesses and contribute about 50% to the total GDP of sub-Saharan countries. SMEs also account for approximately 80% of jobs in Africa, which makes SMEs a significant mechanism for socio-economic growth.
Sandeep points out that most African countries are working towards enhancing their digital payments infrastructure through centralised instant payment initiatives, which is moving towards a digital economy.
“This will propel SME growth and Peach Payments assists in this by powering payment acceptance,” Sandeep explains.
Newly appointed Group Head of SME Sales for Peach Payments, Isabelle Apollon says: “I am excited to lead SME Sales at Peach Payments, which has a rich legacy of supporting start-ups to scale and become leaders in their sectors. I look forward to bringing my experience of successfully leveraging my knowledge and insights of the payments industry to create and execute effective strategies, campaigns, and events around our online payment solutions to benefit the thousands of SME merchants that work with us. I believe that the leadership experience and skills I have honed will be integral to supporting SMEs in Mauritius, South Africa, Kenya and the other African markets that we are expanding into with the cutting-edge solutions that Peach Payments offers.”
Sandeep concludes: “I am confident that Isabelle, with her substantial experience in the payment processing space, strong business network, and people management skills, will bring her expertise to support SME growth and innovation in the region, and in Mauritius. Her successful leadership experience serves as a strong testament to her capabilities and potential contributions.”
Ultimately, having dedicated resources such as Uways and Isabelle based in the Mauritian office speaks volumes about the key place that the island economy holds in the fast-growing payment solution provider’s future plans.
With the Black Friday shopping fiesta seeing payment gateways such as Peach Payments come to the fore, it is clear that the island economy is displaying greater appetite for online payments. The highly anticipated new Blueprint for the financial services sector as announced under Budget 2024-25, could also be expected to see payment technology firms finding their place in the sun.
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About Peach Payments:
Peach Payments is a fast-growing African payment solution provider (PSP) that makes online commerce and digital payment acceptance easier and more accessible across Kenya, Mauritius and South Africa.
The company provides direct settlements in all three countries, as well as aggregated payment services in South Africa. The company works with small and large sellers to provide a complete toolkit to accept, manage and disburse payments through web and mobile.
Peach Payments’ merchant partners include your favourite food delivery services, whether you’re ordering in or using a meal kit, travel services that can help you book your next getaway adventure and even your neighbour’s side-hustle e-commerce store. For these partners and their customers, Peach Payments aims to provide delightful experiences that make it as easy as possible to facilitate online payments.
