$SOL Circle turns to Onafriq to reduce the costs of cross-border payments in Africa with USDC

The issuer of USDC is further expanding in Africa, joining forces with Onafriq to pilot stablecoin payments in 40 countries and 200 million bank accounts.

The stablecoin issuer Circle has partnered with Onafriq, Africa's largest payment gateway, to reduce the high cost of cross-border payments across the continent using USDC.

According to a press release shared with Cointelegraph, Circle aims to pilot USDC settlements

USDC

€0.8801

within Onafriq's vast network, which connects more than 500 wallets and 200 million bank accounts across more than 40 countries.

"With the integration of USDC, we aim to simplify financial transactions for institutions and individuals, reduce costs, and strengthen trust," said Dare Okoudjou, founder and CEO of Onafriq.

He added that the integration of USDC will simplify transactions and boost trust in digital financial services.

Currently, more than 80% of intra-African transactions are conducted through correspondent banks outside the continent and are settled in currencies such as the US dollar or the euro. This amounts to about $5 billion annually in fees.