Nigeria, Others Poised to Lead Africa’s $65bn Digital Finance Boom by 2030—BCG Report

Africa’s financial technology sector is on track for massive expansion, with revenue expected to reach about $65 billion annually by 2030, according to a new report by Boston Consulting Group (BCG). This represents a 13-fold increase from current levels and highlights how quickly digital finance is reshaping the continent’s economy.

The report, titled “Beyond Payments: Unlocking Africa’s Second FinTech Wave,” was presented at the Inclusive FinTech Forum in Kigali, Rwanda. It noted that Africa has already become a global leader in mobile money adoption, driven largely by the widespread use of digital payments across everyday transactions. However, the next phase of growth will depend on expanding services beyond payments into areas like credit, savings, insurance, and business financing.

According to BCG, Sub-Saharan Africa currently accounts for about 74% of global mobile money transaction volumes, with roughly 40% of adults actively using mobile wallets. Despite this strong adoption, access to structured credit remains limited. The report found that in countries such as Ghana, Kenya, and Uganda, more than half of lending still happens through informal channels like savings groups and moneylenders.

The report also highlighted a key imbalance in fintech investment, noting that over 60% of equity funding in African fintechs has gone into payments and lending. While this has helped the sector grow rapidly, it has not sufficiently addressed deeper financial needs such as productive credit for households and small businesses. BCG warned that without broader diversification, the impact of fintech growth may remain limited.

Nigeria was singled out as one of the countries well-positioned to drive the next phase of Africa’s fintech evolution. Ongoing reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria, including open banking policies and regulatory sandbox frameworks, are expected to strengthen innovation. However, the report stressed that success will depend on addressing infrastructure gaps, fragmented systems, and data governance challenges. It also pointed to Rwanda’s coordinated policy approach and compared Africa’s progress with successful systems like Brazil’s PIX and India’s UPI.

source: Leadership