Regional experts have urged African nations to interlink their instant payment systems, arguing that such connectivity would make cross‑border transactions faster, cheaper and more accessible.

The State of Inclusive Instant Payment Systems (SIIPS) Report 2025 notes that the number of countries with instant payment schemes capable of cross‑border use rose from six in 2024 to eleven in 2025.

Overall, the continent now hosts 36 live instant payment systems across 31 countries, reflecting rapid digital‑financial growth.

Despite this expansion, fragmented infrastructure, divergent regulations, currency‑conversion fees and settlement bottlenecks continue to impede seamless money flows between markets.

AfricaNenda Foundation’s Deputy CEO Sabine Mensah highlighted that linking the systems would enable near‑real‑time supplier payments, more efficient investor fund movements and quicker, lower‑cost remittances for families.

She linked the proposal to the African Union’s AfCFTA agenda, which seeks a single market for goods and services and promotes interoperable digital trade frameworks.

Realising the vision will require governments to harmonise payment rules, strengthen technical interoperability and improve coordination across jurisdictions.

Enabling settlement in local currencies could also reduce reliance on third‑party currencies within eligible payment corridors, further lowering transaction costs.

AfricaNenda stresses that payments are foundational infrastructure, not an end in themselves, and that the next step is to move from national systems to a continent‑wide network that moves money as efficiently as goods and services.