This is the biography of Professor Tayo Oviosu, the new CEO of the Paga Group. The fintech company announced recently that the Nigerian founder would be Group CEO while the company announced Opeyemi Oyinloye as Nigeria’ CEO. Paga is a mobile payment firm that aims to provide financial access and digitize cash in developing nations. In Nigeria, its first market, Paga is the most popular mobile money service.
Tayo Oviosu Background
Tayo Oviosu was born on September 10, 1977 in Lagos, to an Edo father a mother from Kogi. He completed his elementary and secondary schooling in Nigeria. He immigrated to the US in 1994 and graduated from the University of Southern California in 1998 with a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering. Later, from 2003 to 2005, he graduated with a Master of Business Administration from Stanford University’s Graduate School of Business.
Tayo Oviosu State of Origin
Although born in Lagos, Nigeria, Tayo Oviosu hails from Ora, Edo State.
Tayo Oviosu Career and Work Experience
ENigeria Newspaper understands that after Tayo Oviosu graduated from college, he chose to pursue a job in semiconductor chip design at Biomorphic VLSI, an eight-person startup, in the hopes of improving his skills with more experience. He was sacked from his position because he had the company spend a lot of money on unnecessary expenses.
After months of unemployment, he eventually secured a position as a Software Engineer for another startup in Los Angeles before relocating to Deloitte Consulting’s CRM and Technology practice as a Senior Consultant.
Following his MBA, he worked at Cisco Systems in San Jose, California, as Manager Corporate Development. In this role, he oversaw strategy, acquisitions, and private equity investments in a few different segments. He also oversaw Cisco’s investment expansion in Africa by providing investment opportunities. After returning to Nigeria, he was appointed Vice President of Travant Capital Partners in Lagos, where he stayed until 2009.
Tayo Oviosu started Paga in 2009 with the goal of digitizing cash in the context of emerging economies. His goal was to assist Nigerians in making purchases, paying utility bills, and paying retailers without having to deal with large sums of money. Tayo had always believed that he would eventually return to Nigeria to help restore its greatness, even when he was employed at the contact center. Hence, Tayo founded Pagatech in order to address two issues: the overuse of currency and the lack of financial access in Nigeria.
Now, Paga had become a hosuehold in world’s cross-border remittance channels as it helps Nigerians in diaspora to transact to Nigeria without any hassle. Within two years of its establishment, Pagatech had one million customers, and since then, it has grown to tens of millions, handling billions of dollars’ worth of transactions. In order to increase inclusion for all Nigerians, Pagatech has also worked with the Central Bank of Nigeria, the country’s top bank, to enhance business better.
Tayo’s efforts at Paga have received international recognition; in 2014, CNBC named Tayo the Entrepreneur of the Year for West Africa, and in 2015, Paga was named the outstanding growing firm of the year in Africa by the African Leadership Network. Tayo belongs to the Young Presidents Organization and is an Endeavor Entrepreneur.
Age
Tayo Oviosu is currently 48 years of age.
Marriage
Tayo Oviosu is married to Affiong Oviosu who is a Nigerian entrepreneur from Cross River State. Affiong is the founder and CEO of Reel Fruit, a Nigerian company that processes and distributes locally grown fruits.
The couple has two “two wonderful kids”.
Networth
Tayo Oviosu is one of Nigeria’s leading tech millionaire. As at January of 2026, he is worth $50 million.
