Sidebar: Why Africa needs its own stablecoins — Paycrest Co-founder

Chibuotu Amadi is the co-founder of Paycrest, a decentralized liquidity network that enables instant and low-cost payments powered by stablecoins.

We spoke to Amadi about the emerging role of local stablecoins in Africa’s digital payment landscape and why he believes non-USD-backed stablecoins like cNGN could reshape how we think about value transfer across borders, without touching the dollar.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity. 

What specific pain points were you trying to solve when you started Paycrest? 

CA: We recognized two major issues with cross-border payments. First, there’s the problem of multiple layers of abstraction. The current system is incredibly fragmented. When you send money internationally, it passes through several intermediaries before reaching the final recipient. Each layer adds complexity, time, and fees. 

Second, there is severe liquidity fragmentation. Most providers can only process about 20% of transactions through their own automated platforms. The remaining 80% happens over the counter, often informally via channels like WhatsApp, because their platforms lack the liquidity to fulfill transactions reliably. 

So, with Paycrest, we set out to build a decentralized liquidity network, which we call a “liquidity layer.” It allows local currency providers to plug in and offer liquidity directly, without us holding their funds. Everything runs on-chain, so it’s transparent and automated. No middlemen, no delays, no risk of getting scammed. 

There’s ongoing tension between decentralization and regulatory compliance in Africa. What should a healthy balance look like?

CA: The problem today is that in trying to be regulatory-compliant, some operators in the space end up completely abandoning the core principles of decentralization. Some companies compromise decentralization while trying to be compliant, creating custodial systems where they hold user funds without proper licensing. This is dangerous. Without regulatory oversight, there’s no protection for users. 

At the other extreme, platforms advertising “no KYC” aren’t something to celebrate. Know-your-customer processes are essential for fraud prevention and security, not witch-hunting. 

At Paycrest, we believe you can maintain compliance without sacrificing decentralization. We use blockchain networks to escrow stablecoins, ensuring speed and trust while never holding user funds. The core blockchain ethos revolves around the custody of your money and the freedom of movement. Our approach is similar to SWIFT’s model — we’re a financial messaging protocol, not a financial institution.

What does it look like to build decentralized systems in societies where trust in institutions is already low and digital literacy remains a challenge? 

CA: Most end users in Africa and emerging markets don’t care about security or custody of funds due to low digital literacy. But that’s not an excuse for builders to be irresponsible.

When building decentralized systems, we promote the ethos of security, privacy, and institutional accountability. Take NoBlocks as an example — users can sign up with just an email and get a smart wallet generated from that email address. They can deposit funds and send money to local currencies with zero fees and zero gas costs. That’s a good user experience because they don’t need to understand gas or manage crypto tokens.

MiniPay offers a similar solution with a low entry barrier. The key is meeting users where they are while educating them about the benefits of the product. The masses don’t care until something goes wrong, so we’re building these systems for them, staying true to our ethos while creating great user experiences for people with limited digital literacy. 

Stablecoins are often pitched as the solution to currency volatility in Africa. But how much real adoption are you seeing, and what do you think is driving or slowing down their real adoption for everyday payments on the continent? 

CA: Stablecoins serve multiple purposes. Some use them to hedge against inflation, but I’ve also seen them as the easiest way to access dollars. When discussing stablecoins, I’m specifically referring to USD stablecoins like USDC and USDT. 

The adoption is growing because we simply don’t have better options. The fact that Nigeria banned Binance P2P demonstrates how much volume was moving through these channels. We need to pay international suppliers, school fees abroad and send money home. 

However, this contributes to devaluing the naira; when everyone sells naira to hold USD, our currency weakens further.  

One problem we face is overdependence on USD stablecoins. We’ve shifted from limited USD fiat to USDC, where liquidity is more abundant. We haven’t truly solved the fundamental problem yet. Local stablecoins might be the future solution. 

If you had to name one emerging trend in Africa’s digital payments or blockchain ecosystem that more people should be paying attention to, what would it be, and why? 

CA: People are underestimating the potential of local currency stablecoins. This isn’t necessarily a mainstream trend yet, but it’s gaining momentum and deserves attention. The key advantage is that governments can regulate local stablecoins. For example, cNGN is regulated by Nigeria’s SEC. Imagine if Nigerian businesses, fintechs, and banks started accepting cNGN just as US institutions now hold treasury in USDC. If government agencies begin not just licensing but using these systems, it creates powerful new possibilities. 

Looking ahead, if we have Kenyan and other regional stablecoins, we could potentially transfer money between African countries without touching the dollar. The dollar might remain a reference point for rates. But actual value could move directly between local stablecoins — perhaps only briefly touching USD as an intermediary for seconds before converting to the destination stablecoin.

This keeps transaction volume focused on local currency movements rather than constantly flowing through the dollar ecosystem. That’s the emerging trend I’m most excited about and building systems to support.