Stablecoins Become Primary Payment Rail for Growing Number of African Companies

A US-based cross-border payments company, Grey, announced that its business platform processed $61.4 million in total payment volume (TPV) within just four months of launch. The platform enables startups and SMEs to access USD corporate accounts, make international payments, convert currencies, and utilize stablecoins like USDC and USDT.

Stablecoin Adoption Driven by Business Needs

According to Grey’s CEO Idorenyin Obong, businesses across Africa are increasingly turning to dollar-pegged digital assets as a primary payment method. This shift is driven by foreign exchange challenges, higher transaction costs with traditional methods, and the need for faster settlement times.

Data from blockchain analytics firm Chainalysis confirms this trend, showing that stablecoins accounted for 43% of all crypto transaction volume in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2024. The region saw a 52% year-on-year increase in on-chain transactions, reaching over $205 billion between July 2024 and June 2025.

Key Use Cases for Stablecoins in African Business Payments

Grey identified two major drivers of activity on its platform:

  • Businesses routing USD collections from payment processors into Grey Business as a treasury layer
  • Companies converting between USD and stablecoins to manage cross-border payments within a single account

These use cases highlight how businesses are leveraging stablecoins for essential functions like supplier payments, trade settlements, and managing international transactions.

Broader Fintech Ecosystem Embraces Stablecoin Solutions

The adoption of stablecoins extends beyond Grey’s platform. Other African fintech leaders have partnered with blockchain networks to expand their payment infrastructure:

  • Paga collaborated with Sui in May to develop cross-border solutions
  • Flutterwave integrated with Polygon in October 2025 for stablecoin payments

This ecosystem development demonstrates the growing recognition of stablecoins as practical payment rails for businesses engaged in international trade.

“Stablecoins being our largest payment channel wasn’t something we projected this early,” Obong noted. “What we’ve seen on the platform is businesses using them not as a workaround but as their primary cross-border rail: for treasury management, for supplier payments, for trade settlements.”