How crypto is shaking up remittances in Africa
There are more than 200 million people relying on cross-border transfers to send money home, and more than 800 million people benefit from these transactions.
Remittance flows in low- and middle-income countries, according to the World Bank, reached US$656-billion in 2023. However, Africa continues to struggle with issues such as high transaction costs, limited access to financial services, unbanked population and – according to the United Nations – a reliance on informal transfer channels.
In South Africa, these challenges are compounded by the cost of transferring money through banks and, even though money transfer operators (MTOs) are cheaper, they are still higher…
