Weaver Fintech, owner of HomeChoice and buy-now-pay-later (BNPL) provider PayJustNow, has more than doubled its market valuation in the past six months as investors continue to back its move from traditional retail to financial technology.
The company’s share price is up more than 100% over the past six months and more than 130% over the past year, pushing its market capitalisation close to R7bn. The rally has taken the stock to levels not seen in more than a decade.
The strong performance reflects growing confidence in Weaver Fintech’s strategic pivot, driven largely by the rapid growth of its BNPL and digital lending businesses, particularly PayJustNow and FinChoice.
Weaver entered the BNPL market in 2021 after acquiring an 85% stake in PayJustNow. Payments were officially launched in 2022, marking a decisive move beyond its mail-order retail roots. The group rebranded last year from HomeChoice International to Weaver Fintech to reflect the growing importance of its financial services operations.
That has reshaped the group’s earnings profile. Business Day previously reported that in 2024 Weaver Fintech generated 57% of group revenue and 92% of profit before group costs. Fintech revenue rose 33.8% to R2.5bn while profit before tax increased 31.7% to R561bn.
CEO Sean Wibberley said at the time that the fintech division had become the group’s main engine of growth, supported by fast-growing digital lending and payment platforms. The group’s customer ecosystem now reaches more than 2.7-million customers, many of whom use more than one product.
PayJustNow has been a key driver of that growth. The BNPL platform recorded a 157% surge in gross merchandise value to R3.9bn, while the launch of longer-term products such as PayStretch has expanded its reach.
The company’s interim results to end-June underscored the momentum. Headline earnings per share rose 45% to 285.5c while profit before tax increased 48% to R370m. Fintech now accounts for about 98% of group profit.
The investor confidence comes despite increased scrutiny of the BNPL sector globally and locally. However, Weaver has previously said that it supports tighter regulation that improves transparency and consumer protection.
Wibberley told Business Day the group already reports BNPL transactions to credit bureaus and uses behavioural modelling and electronic affordability checks to manage risk. The group’s BNPL bad-debt rate is below 2% of gross merchandise value meaning more than 98% of capital is repaid on time.
Consumer credit and financial services have become a more important earnings driver across South Africa’s retail sector.
While not a fintech major, Pepkor, which operates a vast network of discount retail stores, has been expanding its financial services and fintech operations alongside its core retail business. While its share price is down about 6% in six months and 9.4% in a year, the group has been growing its retail credit book and recently received regulatory approval to establish a deposit-taking banking presence at home.
For the year to end-September, Pepkor reported strong growth in its fintech segment, with revenue rising 31.1% and operating profit increasing 52.3%, supported by expanded financial services and connectivity offerings. Retail credit facilitated 16% of sales across its brands, highlighting the growing role of consumer finance in retail performance.
Other retailers such as Mr Price and Lewis have long relied on in-house credit to drive sales and profitability, with credit metrics closely watched as indicators of growth potential and risk. These models differ from BNPL, but they point to the same underlying trend that financial services are becoming central to retail strategies.
Weaver Fintech’s approach stands out for how decisively it has moved away from traditional retail. HomeChoice, once the group’s core business, now contributes a small share of profits. While the division has staged a turnaround and expanded its showroom footprint, it accounted for just 8% of group profit before tax in 2024.
Business Day
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