Story audio is generated using AILesaka Technologies on Thursday announced the extension of the long-stop date for its acquisition of Bank Zero to the end of January next year.In June last year Lesaka announced it had signed a deal to acquire digital lender Bank Zero Mutual Bank for R1.1bn in a move that underscored its ambition to challenge South Africa’s traditional banking sector. The deal has since progressed and was given the greenlight by the Competition Tribunal in November last year. Lesaska said on Thursday the transaction implementation agreement would lapse if the outstanding conditions precedent were not fulfilled or waived by August 6. On June 11, Lesaka and the seller’s representative agreed to extend the date to January 31 2027, while the remaining outstanding regulatory consents are being procured.The company did not say in the statement which regulatory consents are outstanding.Lesaka, which has a primary listing on Nasdaq and a secondary listing on the JSE, last month reported a jump in earnings as it achieved the upper end of its profitability guidance. It also increased its full-year adjusted EPS guidance for 2026. The group reported net revenue for the third quarter rose 16% year on year to R1.57bn, while adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (ebitda) were 45% higher at R337.1m.Adjusted EPS came in at 180c, up more than 200% year on year. Its full-year guidance is for net revenue of R6.2bn to R6.5bn, adjusted ebitda of between R1.25bn and R1.35bn and adjusted EPS of between R5.50 and R6. The guidance for the 2026 financial year excludes the effect of the planned acquisition of Bank Zero.The company has come a long way since its days as Net1 UEPS Technologies, with its turnaround characterised by growth in South Africa’s competitive market for merchant payments, all while chasing a segment of consumers that had long been the preserve of the South African Post Office in its heyday. The group is looking to grow its cross-border payments business with plans to use its place as one of the main backers of South Africa’s first rand-based stablecoin for that purpose. In February, a group of prominent financial institutions — Luno, a Sanlam unit, EasyEquities and Lesaka — announced the creation of the rand-backed stablecoin, Zaru. The move is seen as another sign of the growing use and adoption of cryptocurrencies in the country.Lesaka recently extended executive chair Ali Mazanderani’s term by a further 18 months and made adjustments to his salary, travel benefits and stock options. Mazanderani’s employment term had been extended from January 31 2028 to June 30 2029, the company said in a statement in May.The amendments were intended to “support leadership continuity”, compensate Mazanderani for “his additional time and contribution to Lesaka” and align his incentives with “long-term shareholder value creation”, it said.Mazanderani assumed the executive chairperson role in February 2024. He had been a board member since 2020.With Mudiwa GavazaBusiness Day