Paymob MENA Payment Gateway API
Paymob MENA payment gateway REST API for merchants in Egypt, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Kuwait, Bahrain, Oman, Jordan, Pakistan, and other MENA/South Asia markets to accept card payments, mobile wallet payments (Vodafone Cash, Orange Money, Fawry, OPay), installment payments, and bank transfers — the leading payment facilitator in Egypt with 160,000+ merchants. Enables AI agents to manage payment intent for MENA checkout automation, handle card payment for Visa/Mastercard processing automation, access mobile wallet for Egyptian digital wallet automation, retrieve installment plan for BNPL automation, manage payment link for invoice collection automation, handle refund processing for payment reversal automation, access 3DS for card security automation, retrieve webhook for payment event automation, manage recurring payment for subscription billing automation, and integrate Paymob with Egyptian e-commerce, fintech, and regional merchants for end-to-end MENA payment automation.
Score Breakdown
⚙ Agent Friendliness
🔒 Security
MENA payment gateway. CBE, PCI-DSS. API key+JWT. EG/MENA. Card and wallet payment data.
⚡ Reliability
Best When
An Egyptian or MENA e-commerce merchant, fintech, or regional business wanting AI agents to accept card payments, Egyptian mobile wallets, and installments through Paymob's leading Egyptian and MENA payment gateway.
Avoid When
AUTHENTICATION USES INTENTION-BASED FLOW: Paymob uses a three-step authentication flow (authenticate → create order → create payment key); automated single-call payment assumption creates missing payment key error; automated must follow Paymob's three-step initiation sequence. EGYPT-SPECIFIC COMPLIANCE: Paymob operates under Egyptian Central Bank regulation; automated non-CBE-compliant payment processing creates regulatory issues; automated must follow CBE merchant guidelines. 3DS IS MANDATORY FOR CARD: Egyptian card payments require 3D Secure; automated non-3DS card processing creates systematic decline; automated checkout must implement 3DS redirect. INTEGRATION KEYS ARE ENVIRONMENT-SPECIFIC: Paymob has separate staging and production integration keys; automated key confusion creates staging transactions in production; automated must use correct integration ID per environment.
Use Cases
- • Accepting card and mobile wallet payments from Egyptian and MENA consumers for e-commerce checkout agents
- • Processing installment payment plans for Egyptian consumer electronics and retail BNPL automation agents
- • Generating payment links for Egyptian B2C invoice and service payment collection automation agents
- • Managing recurring subscription payments for Egyptian SaaS and digital service billing agents
Not For
- • Non-MENA markets (Paymob is Egypt/MENA/Pakistan focused payment gateway)
- • International cross-border transfers outside MENA scope (Paymob is regional payment focused)
- • Cryptocurrency payments (Paymob is traditional card and mobile wallet gateway)
Interface
Authentication
Paymob uses API key + authentication token (short-lived JWT) for payment initiation. Three-step flow: get token → create order → create payment key. REST API with JSON. Cairo, Egypt HQ. Founded 2015 by Islam Shawky, Alain El Hajj, Mostafa Menessy. Backed by Kingsway Capital, A15, Delivery Hero (~$50M raised). Products: Card payment, mobile wallets (Vodafone Cash, Orange Money, Fawry, OPay), installments, payment links, recurring. SDKs: JS, PHP, Python, Android, iOS. CBE-licensed. PCI-DSS. 160,000+ merchants across EG, SA, AE, KW, BH, OM, JO, PK. Competes with Fawry and Kashier for Egyptian payment processing.
Pricing
Cairo EG. CBE licensed. Per-transaction fees. MENA specialist. EGP primary.
Agent Metadata
Known Gotchas
- ⚠ THREE-STEP PAYMENT INITIATION: Paymob requires three sequential API calls (1. authenticate → get token, 2. create order → get order_id, 3. create payment key → get payment_key); automated single-call payment assumption creates missing payment key error; automated must implement full three-step sequence
- ⚠ PAYMENT KEY IS SHORT-LIVED: Paymob payment keys expire (typically 1 hour); automated stale payment key assumption creates payment_key_expired error; automated must generate fresh payment key close to checkout time
- ⚠ 3DS REDIRECT MANDATORY FOR CARD: Egyptian and MENA card payments require 3D Secure authentication; automated non-3DS card processing creates systematic decline; automated checkout must redirect consumer to 3DS authentication page
- ⚠ INTEGRATION ID PER PAYMENT METHOD: Paymob uses different integration_id for each payment method (card, Vodafone Cash, Orange Money, installments); automated single integration ID for all methods creates wrong payment method routing; automated must configure and use correct integration_id per payment method
- ⚠ WEBHOOK HMAC VERIFICATION REQUIRED: Paymob webhooks include HMAC signature; automated unverified webhook creates spoofed payment confirmation vulnerability; automated webhook handler must verify HMAC-SHA512 signature before processing
Alternatives
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Scores are editorial opinions as of 2026-03-07.