Why Africa Must Build Faster, Cheaper Payment Rails Without Delay

By Sunny Joseph Imohimi

At the Africa Blockchain Festival in Kigali, where I hosted my first panel session, the conversation centered on a challenge every African business, creator, trader, and startup understands too well: moving money across African borders is still too slow, too expensive, and too fragmented.

Africa trades with itself more than ever, yet payments remain the biggest bottleneck. A simple transfer from Lagos to Kigali can pass through multiple intermediaries, suffer unpredictable delays, and attract fees that kill margins for SMEs. In a continent where over 80% of businesses operate informally, this is not just inefficient it’s a barrier to growth.

The Core Problem

Africa’s payment systems were not built for a connected digital economy. They are separate, inconsistent, and often incompatible across borders. Most cross-border transactions still rely on correspondent banking routes that add cost and time.

The result is simple: Africans pay more to send money within Africa than people in Europe or Asia. This is the exact gap the Africa Blockchain Festival panel confronted directly.

Emerging Solutions Are Within Reach

Across the session, one theme was clear: the tools to fix this already exist. Blockchain infrastructure, stable-value digital assets, and modern settlement rails can remove friction and reduce fees dramatically. Not in theory in practice.

Countries like Rwanda are pushing forward with digital innovation frameworks. Nigeria, Kenya, and Ghana are taking bold steps on instant payments and fintech regulation. The pieces are there; what’s missing is regional coordination.

Why It Matters

Africa’s future depends on moving value as easily as we move information.

SMEs need cheaper cross-border settlement to scale.

Startups need predictable rails to serve multiple markets.

Workers need remittances that don’t lose value to fees.

Governments need transparent, auditable systems to support compliance and trade.

Every second lost in settlement and every naira lost to transaction charges translates directly to reduced economic opportunity.

The Path Forward

For Africa to unlock the next wave of digital commerce, three actions are essential:

1. Interoperability: Payment systems must speak the same language across borders.
2. Regulatory alignment: Countries must collaborate on frameworks that support innovation while managing risk.
3. Scalable digital rails: Blockchain and next-gen infrastructure should complement existing systems, not compete with them.

These are achievable many African markets are already closer to this future than we think.

Africa Cannot Afford to Wait

The Africa Blockchain Festival discussions reinforced one point clearly: there is no technical reason African payments should remain slow or expensive. The challenge is coordination, investment, and political will.

If we get this right, Africa will build a payments backbone that supports 1.4 billion people, accelerates intra-continental trade, and strengthens the continent’s digital economy for the next decade.

The opportunity is here. The urgency is real. And the time to enable faster, cheaper payments across Africa is now.

Imohimi is a blockchain and digital finance professional.