An overview of the role of Fintech in facilitating trade in Africa.

FinTech (a portmanteau of financial services and technology), is a term used to describe new technology that seeks to automate and improve the use and delivery of financial services. ​​​At its core, FinTech is utilized to help consumers, business owners, and organizations better manage their financial processes, operations, and lives by utilizing specialized algorithms and software that are used on computers and increasingly, on smartphones.

FinTech has been vastly adopted by African countries, the key markets are in the South, West, and East of Africa. In 2020, the Covid-19 outbreak and the measures put in place to curb the spread of the disease accelerated the uptake of Fintech and has since eased cross-border trade.

The adoption will soon spike once the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) continental agreement has been fully ratified. The agreement seeks to create a single market for services and goods to deepen the economic integration of Africa. Ratification of the agreement will subsequently lead to a more open border relationship between countries and could set the foundation for more open opportunities for finance.

FinTech has its risks such as phishing attacks, regulatory problems when it comes to money laundering, untraceable transactions, and lack of identity…