Sep 23–30, 2025
Happy October! Here’s your comprehensive, fact-checked rundown of the most relevant crypto + money stories shaping Africa this week.
Ecosystem & Deals
💳 Visa Launches Stablecoin Pre-Funding Pilot (SIBOS 2025)
Major news: At SIBOS 2025, Visa announced a stablecoin prefunding pilot through Visa Direct, enabling select partners to use Circle’s USDC and EURC as pre-funded assets to facilitate near-instant cross-border payments.
How it works:
- Businesses can pre-fund their Visa Direct account with stablecoins instead of fiat currency, which Visa treats as “money in the bank” or available balances for payouts, enabling businesses to send money abroad without locking up large fiat reserves.
- This represents the first time Visa has ventured into stablecoins for cross-border transactions, though recipients can still elect to receive funds in their local currency.
Who it’s for: Banks, remitters and financial institutions that need faster, more flexible ways to manage liquidity across borders.
Timeline: The pilot is working with select partners meeting criteria, with plans to expand in 2026.
Africa relevance: This has massive implications for African remittance corridors. Countries like Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, and South Africa, major remittance destinations, could see significant improvements in cross-border payment speed and cost reduction as this pilot expands.
💸 MoneyGram Launches Stablecoin App
MoneyGram has launched a new standalone app (first rolled out in Colombia) that supports USDC for hold/move/spend functionality. This represents a major TradFi player making stablecoins accessible to retail users through a familiar brand.
Africa angle: MoneyGram operates extensively across Africa, with strong presence in remittance-heavy markets like Nigeria, Kenya, Ghana, Uganda, and Senegal. This stablecoin app is clearly extensible into African corridors, potentially offering:
- Lower-cost remittance alternatives
- Faster settlement times
- Direct USDC access for users in high-inflation environments
- On/off-ramps integrated with existing MoneyGram agent networks
🏦 SWIFT → Blockchain Rails
SWIFT has disclosed plans for a blockchain-based platform for tokenized payments and settlements, developed in collaboration with major global banks. This continues the pattern of traditional financial infrastructure providers experimenting with blockchain technology.
Context: This follows SWIFT’s previous experiments with cross-border CBDC transfers and represents a recognition that tokenized assets and blockchain-based settlements are becoming inevitable parts of the financial infrastructure landscape.
Africa relevance: African central banks and commercial banks already connected to SWIFT could benefit from reduced friction in tokenized asset settlements, particularly for trade finance and correspondent banking relationships.
🟡 Binance Confirmed as Platinum Sponsor → AFTS Accra (Oct 8–10)
Binance has confirmed Platinum Sponsorship for the Africa FinTech Summit (AFTS) in Accra, Ghana (October 8-10, 2025). Given Ghana’s active VASP registration push and Binance’s scale in African markets, expect:
- Digital asset regulatory tracks to feature heavily
- Discussions on Travel Rule implementation
- Networking between VASPs and compliance solution providers
- Potential announcements around Binance’s Ghana market strategy
Registration: africanfintechsummit.com
Market Watch: Crypto & FX
Crypto Snapshot (October 2, 2025)
- BTC: ~$118,728
- ETH: ~$4,400
What Changed Week-over-Week
The Flush (Sep 22): A significant liquidation event saw roughly a billion-plus in leveraged long positions wiped out on/around September 22, clearing speculative froth and knocking BTC and ETH lower. In plain English: highly leveraged traders betting on price increases got margin-called when prices dropped, triggering a cascade of forced selling.
Context: This type of deleveraging is typical in crypto markets and often serves as a “reset” that removes excessive speculation. Nasdaq explainer on liquidations
The Rebound: BTC has since reclaimed higher ground. Contributing factors:
- Cleaner order books: Lower leverage means more sustainable price action
- Institutional infrastructure news: Visa stablecoin pilot, SWIFT DLT plans, and bank-backed EUR stablecoin provide macro tailwinds
- Regulatory clarity: Continued regulatory development in major markets (including Africa) seen as positive for long-term adoption
ETH Context: ETH followed BTC lower during the liquidation cascade and is now tracking the bounce. Key catalysts to watch:
- Layer 2 (L2) activity and adoption metrics
- Spot ETH ETF flows (especially in US markets)
- Upcoming protocol upgrades
🇰🇪 Kenya FX Snapshot
KES vs USD: ~129.26 per dollar (as of CBK bulletin close, Sep 25)
Momentum: Broadly stable week-over-week. The shilling continues to hold relatively steady against the dollar, supported by:
- Diaspora remittance inflows
- Tourism receipts
- CBK foreign exchange interventions
Macro Context:
- Retail inflation ticked slightly higher in September but remains within the Central Bank of Kenya’s target band (2.5% – 7.5%)
- The rates environment remains supportive of a gradual easing bias, with potential for future rate cuts if inflation remains anchored
- Kenya’s current account deficit dynamics continue to influence FX market sentiment
What this means: A stable KES environment is favorable for crypto on-ramps, M-Pesa-to-crypto conversions, and general fintech innovation. Volatility tends to drive flight to USD or stablecoins; stability supports local-currency-denominated products.
On the Ground
🪙 BitSacco: Product Review Session for Chamas
Date: Saturday, September 27, 2025
Venue: Sochati Casa, Nairobi
What is BitSacco? A new Kenyan Savings & Credit Cooperative (SACCO) built on Bitcoin, specifically designed for chamas (informal savings groups). BitSacco is Lightning-enabled and aims to make Bitcoin saving and borrowing feel familiar by wrapping it in the trusted SACCO model that millions of Kenyans already use.
Session Highlights:
1. Embedded Lightning-Address Wallet
- Seamless integration with M-Pesa: deposits automatically convert to satoshis
- One-tap BTC saving with familiar UX
- Lightning Network enables instant, low-fee transactions
2. Lending Roadmap
- Plans to enable loans using Bitcoin as collateral
- Options for individual borrowing or chama-pooled savings models
- Brings DeFi-style collateralized lending to a SACCO framework
3. Abstraction Done Right
- Crypto UX simplified into the SACCO paradigm most Kenyans already understand and trust
- No need to understand blockchain mechanics—users interact with familiar SACCO concepts
- Removes technical barriers to Bitcoin adoption
4. Team & Traction
- Strong, engineering-led founding team with deep Kenya fintech experience
- Bitcoin Dada (prominent Bitcoin educator in Kenya) among early adopters and promoters
- Community-first approach aligns with chama culture
The Big Picture: BitSacco represents a fascinating cultural adaptation of Bitcoin technology. Rather than forcing Kenyans to adopt Western crypto UX patterns, it meets users where they are — in the chama ecosystem. With over 300,000 registered chamas in Kenya managing billions of shillings, the addressable market is significant.
📊 NSE x Tuesday Markets: Indices & ETFs Workshop
Date: Tuesday, September 30, 2025
Venue: Serena Hotel, Nairobi
This workshop, co-hosted by the Nairobi Securities Exchange and Tuesday Markets, focused on demystifying ETFs and indices for Kenyan retail investors.
What is an ETF?
ETF = Exchange-Traded Fund
Think of an ETF like a “basket investment” that trades on the stock exchange just like a single company’s shares. Instead of buying shares in one company (like Safaricom or Equity Bank), you buy one unit of an ETF that holds shares in many companies, or tracks the price of a commodity like gold.
Simple analogy: Imagine you want to buy fruits, but instead of going to the market and selecting individual mangoes, oranges, and bananas one by one (which takes time and effort), you buy a pre-packed fruit basket that already contains a good mix. An ETF is like that fruit basket — one package that contains a mix of different investments.
Why ETFs matter in Kenya:
- Diversification on a budget: You can own a piece of multiple companies with one purchase (could be 20, 50, or even hundreds of companies).
- Lower barrier to entry: Instead of needing thousands or millions to buy shares in many companies, you might only need a few thousand shillings to buy one ETF unit.
- Professional selection: The ETF provider (like Absa or Satrix) does the work of selecting and managing the investments.
- Easy to buy/sell: Trades on NSE just like Safaricom shares—through your regular broker.
Example: The Satrix MSCI World Feeder ETF (listed July 2025) gives Kenyan investors exposure to global companies (think Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, etc.) without needing to open foreign brokerage accounts or worry about international transfers.
Workshop Key Takeaways
1. Where Kenya Is Today Currently only two ETFs listed on the NSE:
- Absa NewGold ETF (GLD): Tracks the price of gold, gives investors gold exposure without physically buying and storing gold bars.
- Satrix MSCI World Feeder ETF: Provides exposure to global stock markets (listed July 2025).
2. NSE’s Strategic Shift: ETFs Over IPOs. The NSE is deliberately prioritizing ETF listings over single-stock IPOs to:
- Deepen market access for retail investors
- Reduce risk through diversification
- Lower the knowledge barrier (easier to understand “agriculture basket” than analyzing 10 individual agri-companies)
- Accelerate market growth
3. AGRI ETF on the Horizon Africa Eats previewed an agriculture-focused ETF concept targeting the African agriculture value chain. This could include:
- Agricultural producers
- Agri-tech companies
- Food processors
- Agricultural input suppliers
Why this matters: Agriculture is ~30% of Kenya’s GDP but underrepresented in public markets. An AGRI ETF could channel retail savings into a critical sector while giving small investors a stake in agricultural growth.
4. Cross-Listing & Access Innovation Tuesday.africa showcased:
- Market-making and access platform for regional investments
- Lets Kenyan retail investors participate in Mauritius-listed portfolio companies
- Breaks down cross-border investment barriers
- Provides liquidity through active market-making
5. The Scale Gap = Massive Opportunity
- ~2.5 million investor accounts registered with the Central Depository & Settlement Corporation (CDSC)
- Only ~100,000 actively trading today (4% active rate!)
- NSE target: ~9 million active accounts by 2029 (90x growth from current active base)
What this means: Enormous total addressable market(TAM) expansion for:
- Stockbrokers and wealth managers
- Asset managers and ETF issuers
- Fintech companies building investment rails
- Financial educators and content creators
Fun fact: The NSE was founded in 1954, predating the Republic of Kenya (independence came in 1963). It’s one of Africa’s oldest and most established stock exchanges.
Clearly a lot is happening across the continent and beyond. The question for African entrepreneurs, investors, and institutions is: Which side of this convergence will you be on?
Spotted something we missed? Reply with links or DM @Digipesa. We’ll verify and add to next week’s brief.
Disclaimer: This brief is for informational purposes only and does not constitute financial, legal, or investment advice. Always conduct your own research and consult with qualified professionals before making financial decisions.