The Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), working alongside African deep-tech firm Interstellar, unveiled the PAPSS African Currency Marketplace (PACM) during the recent Afreximbank Annual Meeting (AAM2025). This new Financial Market Infrastructure aims to tackle the persistent challenge of currency convertibility hindering trade within Africa.
For years, intra-African commerce has been hampered by the continent's 41 diverse currencies, varying regulations, and limited convertibility. Businesses frequently resorted to using external hard currencies like the US dollar for transactions between neighbouring nations. This practice, known as the "hard and costly currency bottleneck," is estimated to drain approximately R90 billion annually through fees, delays, and lost opportunities, impacting the competitiveness of African enterprises and slowing progress under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
PAPSS CEO Mike Ogbalu III explained the new marketplace's function: "The PAPSS African Currency Marketplace is fully transparent, order book-driven, and operates with trusted counterparties, strictly adhering to local regulatory frameworks and global best practices. By creating a single, continent-wide liquidity pool, PACM serves as a key liquidity engine for intra-African commerce."
Ogbalu noted that while PAPSS, operational since 2022, has enabled real-time payments across 17 countries, connecting over 150 banks and 14 national switches, the issue of limited currency convertibility remained. "We soon realised that solving for payments alone was not enough," he stated, highlighting problems like over R36 billion in airline revenues currently 'trapped' in certain African countries due to exchange restrictions.
The PACM, developed jointly by PAPSS and Interstellar, allows the direct exchange of African currencies without converting through hard currencies. Functioning as a transparent, peer-to-peer platform across Africa, it enables businesses to trade in local currencies in near real-time while complying with national rules. This approach aims to unlock liquidity, release trapped capital, reduce foreign exchange costs, and support financial sovereignty.
Interstellar's Founder and CEO, Ernest Mbenkum, emphasised the vision during the launch: "PACM was built from the ground up to serve Africa’s specific needs. PAPSS and Interstellar are co-architects of a new financial future... African currencies deserve a better place in the world. With this marketplace, your local currency is no longer just a medium of exchange, it becomes a vehicle of opportunity." The platform utilises Interstellar's enterprise-grade, blockchain-agnostic infrastructure for security, scalability, and rapid settlement.
Haytham El Maayergi, Executive Vice President of Afreximbank, commented: “The PAPSS African Currency Marketplace gives us the power to transform trade dramatically, bringing us to trade with each other with a key benefit that we can now accept each other’s currency.”
Initial results from a pilot phase are promising. Over 80 African corporates conducted transactions across 12 currency pairs, settling entirely in local currencies. Kenya Airways, for instance, can now directly exchange Nigerian Naira earned from ticket sales for Kenyan Shillings via PACM, bypassing a third currency. Early adopters like ZEP-RE (PTA Reinsurance Company) and Access View Africa have expressed strong support. Ogbalu added that interest is also coming from institutions outside Africa seeking to join the ecosystem.
AfCFTA Adjustment Fund Makes First Investment
In related news at AAM2025, the Credit Fund of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund announced its first investment closure. It committed R180 million to Telecel Global Services Ltd., a subsidiary of the Mauritius-based Telecel Group, through a senior secured amortising loan.
Telecel provides wholesale voice, SMS services, and enterprise connectivity to over 250 telecom operators globally, with a significant African presence. The investment will support Telecel's expansion in Ghana and Liberia, strengthen infrastructure, and help bridge Africa’s digital divide – a critical factor for AfCFTA success.
Jean-Louis Ekra, Chairman of the Board of the AfCFTA Adjustment Fund Corporation, stated: “This R180 million investment in Telecel Global Services demonstrates how targeted capital can drive meaningful impact—accelerating digital connectivity, enabling intra-African trade, and supporting private sector-led development.” AfCFTA Secretary-General Wamkele Mene noted the deal shows the Fund starting to support State Parties and the private sector in making the Agreement "commercially meaningful."
Afreximbank President Prof. Benedict Oramah said the investment strengthens the digital economy and regional connectivity, reinforcing a commitment to transforming Africa's economic structure. Marlene Ngoyi, CEO of Fund Manager FEDA, highlighted the strategic intent to catalyse growth in vital sectors.
The Credit Fund will prioritise commercially viable investments enabling trade, diversification, and inclusive growth aligned with AfCFTA goals. Meanwhile, the PAPSS African Currency Marketplace is now open to eligible corporations, financial institutions, and market participants continent-wide.
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