GITEX NIGERIA has launched MINT AFRICA by GITEX, a new platform that will bring together regulators, financial institutions, investors and technology companies to examine the technologies and infrastructure shaping Africa’s financial sector.
The platform was unveiled in Lagos during the recently concluded GITEX NIGERIA event and is scheduled to debut as part of GITEX NIGERIA week in 2027, in partnership with the Lagos State Government.
The launch comes as Africa’s digital payments economy is projected to reach $1.5 trillion by 2030, according to industry research cited by GITEX, underscoring the growing role of digital payments and financial technologies in the continent’s economy.
MINT AFRICA will focus on developments extending beyond traditional fintech, including artificial intelligence in banking, tokenisation of real-world assets, stablecoins and digital currencies, next-generation payment systems, digital identity, cybersecurity, cross-border interoperability and capital markets.
The platform will also examine the policy, regulatory and investment frameworks required to support the wider adoption of these technologies across African markets.
According to figures cited by GITEX, Nigeria has made progress in expanding access to formal financial services, with adult account ownership increasing from 45.3 percent in 2021 to 63.3 percent in 2024.
However, only 9.1 percent of adults borrowed through formal financial channels, highlighting the gap between access to financial accounts and access to formal credit.
GITEX said MINT AFRICA would explore how emerging technologies and regulatory models could help address such gaps by widening access to capital, modernising financial infrastructure and enabling more consumers and businesses to participate in the digital economy.
GITEX said Lagos was selected to host the platform because of Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem and the concentration of financial technology companies, investors and technology talent in the city.
Kadri Obafemi Hamzat, deputy governor of Lagos State, said the state’s involvement reflected its ambition to remain a major centre for Africa’s digital transformation.
“Lagos is a consequential destination and what happens here helps shape Africa’s digital transformation trajectory,” Hamzat said.
As part of its focus on digital assets and cross-border financial systems, the platform will also examine the regulatory challenges arising from the growing use of technologies such as stablecoins, digital currencies and tokenised assets.
Tahiru Al Hassan, head of oversight and compliance, virtual assets department, Bank of Ghana, said greater regulatory coordination would be necessary as digital assets increasingly operate across national borders.
“Greater regulatory coordination across Africa will be essential to addressing the inherently cross-border nature of digital assets, avoiding unnecessary fragmentation and building trusted, interoperable ecosystems across the continent,” he said.
GITEX said the programme would bring together governments, regulators, banks, institutional investors, fintech companies, technology firms and digital asset innovators to strengthen connections between policy, capital and financial technology.
Trixie LohMirmand, chief executive officer of GITEX, said Nigeria’s fintech ecosystem and market scale made Lagos a suitable location for the new platform.
According to LohMirmand, the financial sector is moving beyond conventional fintech as artificial intelligence becomes increasingly embedded in financial services, assets are tokenised and payment systems become more interconnected across borders.
She said MINT AFRICA would seek to connect technology, regulation, infrastructure and global capital to support the development of Africa’s financial economy.
The initiative also comes against the backdrop of broader financing challenges across the continent. GITEX said the African Development Bank estimates that reforms involving deeper capital markets, stronger domestic resource mobilisation and public-private partnerships could unlock up to $1.43 trillion in financing annually.
MINT AFRICA is expected to form part of the GITEX NIGERIA programme in 2027, with discussions centred on financial technology, digital infrastructure, regulation, capital and investment.
