Platnova Technologies Limited has called for a unified and interoperable payments system across Africa, warning that fragmented financial infrastructure is slowing transactions, raising costs, and limiting the continent’s ability to scale digital finance.
The digital payments and remittance firm said this at the BusinessDay Fintech Summit 2026 held in Lagos, billed “The Next Financial Frontier: Intelligence, Infrastructure & Inclusion in Africa’s Digital Money Economy,” where discussions centred on how to build resilient and inclusive financial systems.
Benjamin Oyemolan, chief executive officer and co-founder of Platnova, said disconnected financial systems remain one of the biggest constraints to growth.
“The biggest bottleneck is infrastructure fragmentation,” he said. Our technologies are built in fragments and disconnected to a larger extent, which makes transactions slower, more expensive and less efficient than they should be.”
He said that if Africa was serious about scale, “then our systems must begin to speak to one another.”
According to Oyemolan, the continent must aim to make cross-border payments as seamless as communication on the internet, noting that while information now travels instantly, money still faces delays and multiple charges.
“The goal we are pursuing is to move money across borders as easily as sending information,” he said.
Stanley Jacob, president of FintechNGR and group chief innovation and technology officer at Meristem Securities Group, said growth metrics such as user numbers and transaction volumes would no longer be sufficient indicators of progress.
“The next phase of fintech growth in Africa will not be defined only by payment volumes or user numbers. It will be defined by the strength of infrastructure, the confidence of users and the ability of institutions to collaborate at scale,” Jacob said.
He noted that while the continent has recorded significant expansion over the past decade, the focus must now shift to building sustainable and secure systems capable of serving millions efficiently.
“We must now focus on resilience, innovation, cybersecurity and financial systems that can serve millions efficiently. That is how real transformation happens,” he added.
Oyemolan said that future growth would be driven by partnerships rather than isolated innovation, arguing that Africa does not necessarily need more fintech products but stronger integration across existing systems.
He pointed to the growing role of stablecoins and hybrid settlement models in improving transaction speed and reducing costs in cross-border payments, describing them as complementary to traditional financial systems.
“Stablecoins make settlement faster, fees lower, and money can move globally with ease. The future is hybrid, where innovation works side by side with existing systems,” he said.
Other panellists echoed the need for balance between global standards and local realities.
Damola Giwa, country manager for Visa West Africa, said scaling payments across Africa would require combining international high standards with local solutions.
“We can bring global best practice, scalability, interoperability and trust, while working with local players solving local market problems. That combination is important because every market has unique realities that must be understood. Success will come from blending global capability with local relevance,” he said.
Aisha Amirah Adedeji, a global private banker and wealth management specialist, urged fintech firms to expand beyond payments into wealth creation and financial planning services.
“We need to move from a payments conversation to a portfolios conversation. It is no longer enough to help people move money; platforms must also help them grow, preserve and invest that money. That is how long-term value is created,” she said.
BusinessDay’s publisher, Frank Aigbogun, represented by deputy editor-in-chief Innocent Unah, said Africa’s financial sector had reached a critical stage where access alone is no longer enough.
“Access is no longer enough. The real question now is what kind of financial system we are building, and who it truly serves. If growth does not translate into opportunity for more people, then inclusion remains incomplete,” he said.