As Africa’s fintech ecosystem matures, the next major growth frontier may not lie in peer-to-peer mobile transactions – but in the vast, under-automated world of business-to-business (B2B) payments. A recent report by MasterCard highlights that Africa’s digital payments market could reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, with B2B payments forming the bulk of that opportunity.

While mobile money continues to dominate headlines and daily life across the continent, particularly in East Africa, business payment systems are still catching up. They represent a significant opportunity for startups, banks, and infrastructure providers looking to drive financial inclusion and unlock value for micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs).

[TECH] FINTECH AFRICA | Nigerian B2B Fintech, Waza, Launches Multi-Currency Account Platform to Support Businesses in Emerging Markets: Waza, a Y Combinator-backed (YC W23 Batch) B2B payments company, has la.. https://t.co/WypQcE5odY via @BitcoinKE

— Top Kenyan Blogs (@Blogs_Kenya) January 22, 2025

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TL;DR – Why This Matters

  • Africa’s digital payments market is expected to hit $1.5 trillion by 2030.

  • B2B transactions will make up the majority of this volume.

  • Kenya leads in B2B payment automation, but most countries lag behind.

  • New rails like PAPSS are reducing the cost and friction of cross-border B2B payments.

  • Fintechs that serve MSMEs with payment + financial tools are best positioned for growth.

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B2B Payments: The Overlooked Giant

African fintech innovation has long focused on retail financial services, particularly mobile wallets and peer-to-peer (P2P) transfers. However, B2B transactions make up more than 90% of payment flows in many economies, and they remain largely inefficient, opaque, and manual.

These include supplier payments, invoice settlements, cross-border trade, payroll, taxes, and more – many of which still rely on cash, checks, or delayed bank transfers.

In Kenya, for instance, 83.4% of businesses report having adopted either semi- or fully-automated B2B payments. This makes it one of the most advanced countries in terms of B2B digitization in Africa. But even there, challenges persist: payment delays, reconciliation issues, and fraud risks continue to hinder seamless operations.

Nigerian Fintech, Mono (@mono_hq), Partners with @Mastercard to Enable Account-to-Account Payments. Read more https://t.co/R8I6AycetP

— Africa Tech Summit – Accra 24-25th Sep (@AfricaTechSMT) April 11, 2024

Why Now? The Digital Foundations Are Set

Several macro factors are converging to accelerate the digitization of African B2B payments:

  • Increased mobile and internet penetration is enabling more cloud-based and mobile-first financial tools.

  • Rising demand from MSMEs – which contribute up to 90% of employment in many African economies – requires simple, integrated platforms to manage invoices, pay suppliers, and receive funds.

  • Improved digital infrastructure, including real-time payment rails and API-driven services, is allowing fintechs to build faster and more secure solutions.

Companies like Safaricom’s M-PESA, PayStack, Flutterwave, and Cellulant have already begun expanding beyond consumer wallets into B2B services such as merchant collections, payouts, and accounting integrations.

Safaricom B2B App, M-PESA for Business, Surpass Over 50K Downloads as LIPA NA M-PESA Merchants Hit 186, 000 https://t.co/zq3FjLi4Ja via @Bitcoin KE

— P2Pmoneyshop (@p2pmoneyshop) August 3, 2020

Cross-border payments remain one of the thorniest issues in B2B transactions on the continent. With over 40 currencies and multiple capital controls, intra-African trade has long suffered from slow, expensive, and USD-dependent payment flows.

Initiatives like the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), launched under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), aim to address this. PAPSS allows real-time settlement in local currencies, reducing dependency on hard currency and enabling more frictionless B2B trade across borders.

AfCFTA | ‘PAPSS Can Save African Countries $5 Billion in Processing Costs By Eliminating Dollar Use in Cross-Border Trade,’ Says Africa’s Largest Bank

Over 80% of cross-border payments from African banks are still processed offshorehttps://t.co/Es8EfySAJs @papss_africa @AfCFTA pic.twitter.com/UEjsWzzcG7

— BitKE (@BitcoinKE) November 14, 2024

Combined with regional interoperability efforts – such as East Africa’s harmonized mobile money standards and West Africa’s GIM-UEMOA – the pieces of a more integrated African payments system are falling into place.

 

What’s Still Missing?

Despite strong momentum, the African B2B payments ecosystem still faces key gaps:

  • Lack of standardized platforms for invoices, reconciliation, and recurring billing

  • Fragmented regulatory environments that complicate compliance across markets

  • Low access to credit and financial tools among MSMEs

  • Trust issues between businesses due to fraud and unreliable payment timelines

Fintechs that can offer embedded financial services – credit, insurance, accounting – alongside payment tools are more likely to build lasting value.

The future of African payments lies not just in moving money faster – but in enabling businesses to operate more efficiently. While mobile money laid the groundwork, B2B payments will define the next chapter of fintech on the continent.

For fintechs, regulators, and investors looking to shape Africa’s digital economy, this is a $1.5 trillion opportunity hiding in plain sight.

 

 

 

 

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