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Setting Up Stripe for African Businesses: A Complete Guide

Stripe is now available in 12 African countries. Here is how to activate it, configure webhooks, and handle NGN, GHS, and KES.

DO
David Osei
Lead Engineer, AionBooking
Feb 14, 2026 8 min read
Stripe Payments Tutorial Africa

Stripe expanded to Nigeria, Ghana, and Kenya in 2024. If you have not connected Stripe to your AionBooking account yet, this guide will walk you through the full setup — from activating your Stripe account to receiving your first test payment.

Step 1: Activate Your Stripe Account

Go to stripe.com and create an account with your business email. You will need to verify your identity, provide your business registration details (CAC number in Nigeria, or equivalent), and link a bank account for payouts.

Note

Nigerian Stripe accounts require a BVN (Bank Verification Number) for the primary account holder and a valid business registration. Sole proprietorships are accepted — you do not need a limited company.

Step 2: Connect Stripe to AionBooking

In your AionBooking dashboard, go to Settings → Payments → Connect Stripe. You will be redirected to Stripe to authorise the connection. AionBooking uses Stripe Connect under the hood — this means your customers' payments go directly to your Stripe account, and AionBooking never holds your money.

  • Dashboard → Settings → Payments → Connect Stripe
  • Authorise the connection on the Stripe OAuth screen
  • Select your default currency (NGN, GHS, KES, USD, GBP, EUR)
  • Set your deposit percentage (recommended: 30–50%)
  • Enable automatic payment capture vs manual authorisation

Step 3: Configure Webhooks

Webhooks are how Stripe tells AionBooking that a payment succeeded, failed, or was refunded. AionBooking handles this automatically when you connect via OAuth — our webhook endpoint is registered on your behalf. You do not need to manually set up webhooks in your Stripe dashboard.

However, if you are building a custom integration or running AionBooking self-hosted, you will need to register the webhook endpoint manually. The endpoint is:

bash
POST https://api.aionbooking.com/webhooks/stripe

Step 4: Test With Real Card Numbers

Before going live, use Stripe's test mode to verify the full booking flow. Create a test booking on your own storefront and pay with test card 4242 4242 4242 4242 (any future expiry, any CVC). You should receive a booking confirmation email and see the booking in your dashboard within seconds.

Warning

Never enter real card numbers in Stripe test mode. Switch to live mode in your AionBooking settings (Settings → Payments → Live Mode) only when you are ready to start accepting real payments.

Handling Multi-Currency

If you serve customers in multiple countries, AionBooking can automatically select the correct currency based on the customer's billing address. Set your presentment currencies in Settings → Payments → Currencies. AionBooking will present prices in the customer's local currency and settle to your account in your chosen payout currency.

DO
David Osei
Lead Engineer, AionBooking

Part of the core team at AionBooking, working on product, growth, and the developer ecosystem.

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