Kenya blockchain industry urges faster stablecoin adoption amid new digital asset rules

Participants during a panel discussion at the fourth edition of the Kenya Blockchain and Crypto Conference in Nairobi. [Juliet Omelo, Standard]

Kenya’s fintech and blockchain industry is stepping up calls for faster adoption of stablecoins as a solution to Africa’s costly and slow cross-border payment systems, even as regulators move cautiously to build a formal legal framework for digital assets.

This emerged during the fourth edition of the Kenya Blockchain and Crypto Conference (KBCC) in Nairobi, where industry leaders, regulators, banks, and fintech innovators converged under the theme ‘Stablecoins, Payments and the Digital Economy in Africa.’

 The discussions largely centred on how blockchain-based currencies could reshape remittances, trade settlements, and regional commerce.

“The discussions at this conference are really about solving real problems in cross-border payments, where money is still expensive, slow, and unreliable to move across borders,” said Sheila Waswa, founding CEO of Chasing Mavericks pr firm and organiser of the conference.

Participants noted that Africa’s payments ecosystem remains heavily burdened by delays and high transaction costs, particularly in cross-border transfers involving multiple intermediaries.

“One of the issues we’ve been grappling with, especially as far as cross-border payments are concerned, is how expensive, unreliable, and slow it is to move money. Sometimes it can take up to two weeks,” Waswa added, saying stablecoins could significantly reduce settlement times and costs.

Industry players said the technology is already gaining traction among businesses engaged in multi-market operations, even though broader adoption is still at an early stage.

Apollo Sande, Kenya country manager at Luno, said stablecoins are increasingly being used for remittances, treasury operations, and international settlements, but warned that knowledge gaps remain a key barrier to scaling.

“As far as cross-border payments are concerned, we’ve always depended on systems with multiple hops that take fees along the way and settle after two to three days. Stablecoins can address that, but there’s still a significant knowledge gap and provider competence gap,” Sande said.

He added that manufacturers, importers, and exporters are among those yet to fully integrate blockchain-based payment systems into their operations due to compliance uncertainties and limited technical understanding.

Kevin Kegima of YogoPay said stablecoins represent the next level in improving payment efficiency for SMEs and large enterprises operating across Africa and global markets, including Asia, Europe, and the United States.

YogoPay currently facilitates cross-border transactions in multiple corridors, including Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Tanzania, Uganda, and China, using both fiat currencies and stablecoins.

The conference also underscored Kenya’s growing ambition to position itself as a regional hub for digital finance innovation.

Daniel Mainda, CEO of the Nairobi International Financial Centre Authority, said the government is working with the Central Bank of Kenya and the Capital Markets Authority to finalize regulations for virtual asset service providers.

“We want Nairobi to become the home of  technology and startups on the continent,” Mainda said, noting that upcoming regulations are aimed at balancing investor protection with innovation and market competitiveness.

Stakeholders at the conference expressed optimism that clearer regulatory frameworks, combined with stronger industry collaboration, could accelerate mainstream adoption of blockchain-powered payment systems and strengthen Kenya’s position in Africa’s evolving digital economy.