WATCH | Innovate Africa: Visa’s $1bn bet on Africa — how will it be spent?

Africa is often called the final frontier for fintech growth, and for good reason. Despite the rapid adoption of mobile money in recent years, the vast majority of payments across the continent are still made in cash.

For global fintechs and payment giants such as Visa, this represents a tremendous opportunity to transform how Africans transact, while also unlocking massive untapped markets. In a bold move underscoring its commitment to this vision, Visa recently announced plans to invest $1bn (R17.64bn) in Africa by 2027.

The goal? To drive the growth of fintech ecosystems, expand access to digital payments, and support innovation across the continent. But how will Visa spend this significant investment? What strategies are in place to ensure that the funds translate into meaningful change for Africa’s diverse markets?

To answer these questions, Innovate Africa founder Kieno Kammies sat down with Meagan Rabe, Visa’s senior director for sub-Saharan Africa fintech, and James Ashton-Smith, head of Visa’s Accelerator programme for Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East and Africa.

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