Africa’s Payments Landscape: A Continuous Digital Revolution

Africa is leading a global digital payments revolution as the continent continues its transition from an historic dependency on cash-based transactions towards a future characterised by digital payments. This growth is being driven by the need for instant, real-time, seamless experiences like enhanced cross-border transactions, contactless payments and digital wallets.

Our continent is the ideal environment for this digital payment revolution. Africa is the second fastest-growing continent (after Asia), is home to nearly half of the world’s 20 fastest-growing economies and has a young, digitally native consumer population. Little wonder, then, that the continent’s digital payments economy is expected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2030.

What’s driving this momentum? At the heart of it lies the intrinsic link between liquidity and payments. For effective liquidity management and informed corporate decision-making, real-time visibility into liquidity positions and automated workflows are just as vital as adaptable cash management structures. As a result, we’re seeing both enhancements to traditional payment methods and a surge in innovative instruments designed to optimise liquidity.

Real-time visibility that enables faster, more accurate payments and receivables information or facilitation is critical. Instant, embedded payments are rapidly transforming how companies handle their B2B payments, payroll and supplier transactions, enabling faster access to cash, improved working capital management and, ultimately, better client retention.

In addition, seamless real-time domestic and cross-border payments – whether for remittances or the settlement of trade – are vital for African economies. We expect to see further growth in harmonised payment systems that facilitate real-time transactions across borders. These include schemes, gateways, real-time gross settlement systems and cross-border financial market infrastructure.

It’s important to note that at least half of all African countries have a domestic instant payments scheme in place. These local schemes are expected to catalyse the shift to cross-border instant experiences, spurring further growth into regional payment schemes.

The ongoing exploration of digital currencies – particularly Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs) and stablecoins – is becoming increasingly significant in Africa’s evolving payments landscape. Several African central banks have already launched or piloted CBDCs, such as Nigeria’s eNaira and Ghana’s eCedi, while many others are in the exploration or feasibility stages. These initiatives aim to enhance payment efficiency, strengthen monetary policy, and promote financial inclusion.

Stablecoins represent a pivotal advancement in digital payments. Unlike traditional cryptocurrencies often used for speculation, stablecoins combine the transparency and efficiency of blockchain technology with price stability. Their ability to streamline settlement and improve payment utility makes them especially valuable for cross-border transactions and remittances. Moreover, their typically stronger regulatory oversight fosters greater transparency and trust – key factors driving broader adoption.

Mobile money is still dominant in Africa. Sub-Saharan Africa currently has the most active mobile money users globally, based on monthly activity and new accounts registered. Today the region boasts the most mobile money accounts (1.1 billion, or 52% of the global total) as well as the highest growth rates (19% year-on-year). Providers that offer broader propositions – including bill and bulk payments, credit, savings, insurance and cross-border payments – will continue to see growth as consumer needs evolve to a broader suite of financial services.

In all this, three key enablers remain critical for the payments evolution:

Interoperability – whether to facilitate cross-border settlement in local currency, enable last-mile payments or allow for the integration of stablecoins into current banking systems – is a cornerstone for connected experiences.

Secondly, infrastructure investment will be a game-changer. Expanding internet access – whether through terrestrial networks or satellite connectivity – is essential to driving inclusion in Africa’s fast-growing digital payments ecosystem. To support this, technology must evolve alongside platform-based architectures. This includes APIs that enable real-time, cross-sector integration; AI that delivers hyper-personalised, frictionless user experiences; and machine learning that detects and prevents cyber threats at scale. Financial institutions are expected to lead this transformation by investing in cloud-powered models that accelerate digital rollout and boost operational capacity.

Thirdly, the maturity and alignment of regulatory frameworks will always be critical to driving adoption and accessibility and ensuring consumer protection. The harmonisation of payments through standards (where necessary) will promote innovation and enable an environment in which all players can participate efficiently and effectively. Across the continent, modernisation efforts are being made to connect fragmented systems and improve the mobile networks and operational frameworks that enable financial transactions, this will extend across borders, but not without the right focus, policy frameworks, and will.

Africa continues to assert itself as a hub of innovation. The providers that will lead this digital evolution are those who embrace flexibility, harness technology, and invest in deeply understanding client needs and market trends – while maintaining a strong foundation of trust and regulatory compliance.