TurnStay scales from start-up to R1bn transactions

Three years after its founding, South African fintech firm TurnStay has rapidly grown into a cross-border payments platform processing over R1 billion in travel payments within the first half of 2026. This represents a substantial increase from its initial processing of only tens of thousands of rands after launching in late 2023.

The company now serves more than 100 clients, including major players in African travel and hospitality, and has expanded its team to 13 members. TurnStay's founders, Alon Stern and James Hedley, claim that the platform can reduce billing costs for hotels and travel businesses by up to 70%. The company achieves this by combining a merchant-of-record model with payment methods such as stablecoins, enabling faster and more cost-effective cross-border transactions.

Stern emphasizes that the company's focus has been on its growth trajectory rather than individual transaction totals, noting that the R1 billion milestone in the first half of 2026 reflects significant progress over just two years. Growth has been fueled by existing customers increasing their activity on the platform and new large travel and hospitality businesses joining TurnStay.

The company's services cover South Africa, Namibia, Kenya, and Mauritius, with plans for further African expansion as the regulatory framework develops. Currently, around 80% of its clients are based in South Africa, but demand is growing among businesses with cross-border operations in Africa. TurnStay has raised funding at key stages, including $300,000 in pre-seed funding in 2024 and a $2 million seed round in 2025.

The seed round was primarily used for talent acquisition and regulatory compliance, rather than short-term customer acquisition. The company's technology now handles over 80% of its cross-border transactions via stablecoin rails, with domestic South African payments not necessarily requiring this technology. The broader aspects of TurnStay's offering include integrated services like bookings, supplier payments, reconciliation, multiple currencies, and settlements.

Moving forward, the company plans to broaden its customer base and geographic reach, focusing on investment in payment and operational technology, entering new African markets, and expanding the range of businesses utilizing its platform.