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Payment Architecture

Simiz provides a unified abstraction layer over multiple African payment providers. This page explains how payments flow through the system.

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Non-custodial orchestration

Simiz is non-custodial orchestration software: it routes and normalizes payment flows via APIs and does not operate the custody of end-customer funds. Settlement and money movement are executed by licensed partner providers (Mobile Money operators, banks, and other regulated payment institutions), subject to applicable rules in each corridor.
Diagram: merchant application calls the Simiz API, which routes each transaction to MTN MoMo, Orange Money, Wave, or a partner bank; a signed webhook returns to the merchant.

Your app calls one API. Simiz routes each transaction to the optimal licensed partner and notifies you back with a signed webhook.

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Payment lifecycle

Every payment follows a predictable lifecycle:

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Payment statuses

Always rely on webhooks as the source of truth for payment status, not polling. See the Webhooks guide.

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Provider routing

Simiz routes the payment to the provider that matches the payment_method supplied for the transaction:

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Request flow

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Supported currencies

Amounts are always in the smallest currency unit. For XAF and XOF, this is 1 franc (no cents).

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Next steps

Mobile Money

Deep dive into Mobile Money payment flows.

Recurring Payments

Set up and manage recurring payment schedules.