Accra: Leading experts in finance and technology Wednesday called for bold leadership, responsible innovation, and stronger collaboration to position Africa at the forefront of the global digital finance revolution. At the 2026 3i Africa Summit in Accra, keynote speakers, including regulators and industry analysts, highlighted the continent's progress, noting that about 49 percent of adults in Sub-Saharan Africa now hold digital financial accounts, making digital finance a significant driver of economic activity.
According to Ghana News Agency, experts stressed the need for enhanced, continent-wide efforts to build value across the financial technology ecosystem by strengthening cross-border systems that could unlock growth at scale. Dr. Johnson Pandit Asiama, the Governor of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), in his presentation, identified fragmentation, high costs, and uneven regulatory alignment as key obstacles requiring strong leadership to overcome.
'Africa has reached a point where participation is no longer the ambition - leadership is,' said Dr. Asiama. 'The answer will depend on how deliberately we act, how effectively we coordinate, and how consistently we execute.' He identified digital credit, embedded finance, merchant payments, supply chain finance, and cross-border services as the next critical opportunities, noting that basic payment infrastructure was increasingly in place across African markets.
Mrs. Clara Arthur, the Chief Executive of Ghana Interbank Payment and Settlement Systems (GhIPSS), said sustaining Africa's progress would require deeper collaboration and leadership driven by innovation. 'When leadership is collaborative and partnerships are intentional, digital finance moves beyond systems to deliver real impact. It ensures that for every Ghanaian - like the woman in Makola market - access to financial services is no longer a barrier, but a given,' she noted.
Mrs. Arthur highlighted that Africa accounted for 66 percent of global mobile money transaction value, with projections that artificial intelligence (AI) could generate 40 million jobs across the continent. 'Beyond Ghana, we remain committed to collaboration across Africa. GhIPSS is ready to connect with other instant payment systems across the continent because the future of digital finance lies in cross-border interoperability,' she said.
Ms. Maha El Dimachki, Chief Executive Officer of the Global Finance and Technology Network (GFTN), emphasized Africa's ability to leapfrog traditional development models and provide globally relevant innovations. She outlined three priorities: supportive policies and regulation, investment in infrastructure and regulatory sandboxes, and the development of skills pipelines to match rapid technological change.
Ms. El Dimachki also announced the development of the Fintech Futures Index, a benchmarking tool to help regulators assess their innovation environments against global standards and map practical pathways for responsible technology adoption. She reiterated the need for strong leadership and urged governments, the private sector, and academia to work in genuine partnership to turn summit discussions into concrete and measurable outcomes.