Nigeria, Others Position to Lead Africa’s Digital Finance Growth To $65bn—Report

Africa’s financial technology industry is projected to generate about $65 billion in annual revenue by 2030, marking a 13-fold expansion from current levels, according to a new report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG).

The projection underscores the scale of transformation underway in Africa’s digital finance ecosystem, which has grown rapidly over the past decade on the back of mobile money and digital payment adoption.

The report, titled “Beyond Payments: Unlocking Africa’s Second FinTech Wave,” was launched at the Inclusive FinTech Forum in Kigali, Rwanda, noted that while Africa has achieved global leadership in mobile money usage, the next phase of growth will depend on the continent’s ability to expand into deeper financial services such as credit, insurance, savings, and enterprise financing beyond basic payment systems.

BCG stated that Sub-Saharan Africa currently accounts for 74 per cent of global mobile money transaction volumes, with about 40 per cent of adults actively using mobile wallets. This positions the region as the world’s most advanced mobile money market in terms of adoption. However, the report warned that this success has not translated into equivalent access to structured credit, particularly for households and small businesses.

According to the findings, more than half of lending activities in markets such as Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda still take place through informal channels, including savings groups and moneylenders.

The report highlighted this as a persistent structural gap that limits the economic impact of digital financial inclusion, despite the rapid expansion of mobile-based financial services across the continent.

It further revealed that over 60 per cent of equity funding into African fintech companies has been concentrated in payments and lending segments, which together account for more than half of all fintech operators in the region. While this has supported rapid scale and user growth, BCG cautioned that such concentration does not address broader structural deficiencies in credit access and financial depth.

The report stressed that Africa’s first fintech wave delivered transactional inclusion by enabling digital payments at scale, but the second wave must focus on converting these payment infrastructures into productive financial systems that support business growth, job creation, and long-term economic resilience. It noted that without this shift, the benefits of digital finance may remain limited in scope.

It identified five policy priorities for African governments and regulators. to support the transition, as these include the development of interoperable digital financial infrastructure, the adoption of data-driven credit assessment systems, regulatory harmonisation across markets, stronger cybersecurity and consumer protection frameworks, and the deepening of local currency capital markets to support lending and investment activities.

Hence, BCG emphasised that regulatory fragmentation remains a significant barrier to scaling fintech services across African borders. It argued that inconsistent rules and a lack of interoperability between national systems continue to slow down innovation and limit the ability of fintech companies to expand regionally.

The report also highlighted Nigeria’s strategic position in the evolving fintech landscape. With ongoing regulatory reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria, including the introduction of open banking frameworks and regulatory sandbox initiatives, the country is seen as well-positioned to play a leading role in Africa’s second fintech wave. However, the report noted that success will depend on how effectively issues such as system fragmentation, infrastructure gaps, and data governance are addressed.

Meanwhile, the report cited Rwanda as an example of coordinated policy execution, particularly through its licencing passport arrangement with Kenya and its structured regulatory environment. Even as it drew comparisons with Brazil’s PIX and India’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI), both of which have successfully built large-scale interoperable payment ecosystems that drive financial inclusion and efficiency.

The report concluded that Africa’s fintech sector is entering a new phase defined less by rapid user acquisition and more by structural consolidation and institutional maturity. It stated that while the continent has already demonstrated the ability to scale digital financial services, the next decade will be shaped by the quality of policy decisions and regulatory frameworks that determine how effectively financial inclusion translates into real economic value.

The report added that Africa’s fintech evolution will depend on moving beyond payments to building integrated financial systems capable of supporting credit expansion, enterprise growth, and sustainable economic development across markets.