Bridging crypto divide: Global adoption trends, African lag

Over the past five years, cryptocurrency has surged into a $3.3 trillion global asset class, driven by retail demand, $75 billion in institutional crypto funds (Fortunly, 2025), and DeFi’s Total Value Locked rising from $5 billion to $190 billion (UPay Blog, 2025). 

Despite $11.5 billion in 2024 venture funding (Galaxy, 2025) and 94 per cent of central banks exploring CBDCs (BIS, 2024), Africa accounts for only 2.7 per cent of on-chain volume.

Nigeria’s $59 billion in transactions ranks second globally, yet just 25 per cent of Sub-Saharan states have crypto laws; many maintain bans (Fuje et al., 2022).

Jurisdictions such as the UAE (ADGM/VARA), Singapore (PSA), the EU (MiCA) and Brazil (Drex) show that clear regulation and infrastructure unlock growth.

Africa’s 12 per cent broadband, 27 per cent mobile-Internet, and 47 per cent electricity access (GSMA, 2024) constrain uptake. 

This gap penalises trade, inflates remittance fees (7.9 per cent compared to three per cent SDG target) and stalls tokenised finance.

Bridging it requires AU/ECOWAS model laws, a Pan-African licensing passport, infrastructure investment and blockchain education.

Global regulatory champions

The United Arab Emirates has emerged as a leading crypto hub with two complementary regimes: Abu Dhabi’s ADGM free zone applies a risk-based licensing approach to fiat-referenced tokens and stablecoins, while Dubai’s Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (VARA) enforces stringent KYC/AML, cybersecurity and governance standards alongside zero personal-income tax on crypto gains.

Singapore’s Payment Services Act (PSA), reinforced in April 2024, unifies digital-payment-token services under a single licensing framework with clear consumer-protection mandates and FATF-aligned safeguards, attracting major exchanges such as Coinbase and OKX.

The European Union’s markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) establish a phased, pan-EU “passport” for stablecoins and service providers, harmonising transparency, prudential requirements and market-integrity rules across all member states.

India—ranked first in Chainalysis’s 2023 Adoption Index—demonstrates how robust grass-roots usage can thrive even amid policy ambiguity, highlighting the need for clear, future-focused legislation.

Brazil’s Banco Central do Brasil has advanced its Digital Brazilian Real (Drex) piloted through public–private partnerships, testing tokenised trade-finance solutions in agriculture and showcasing a pragmatic CBDC model.

Finally, Estonia and Switzerland provide models of tax and supervisory clarity: Estonia treats crypto transactions as property transfers subject to a flat 20 per cent income tax, while Switzerland’s FINMA guidance clarifies stablecoin licensing and governance, fostering legal certainty and attracting reputable market participants.

Bottlenecks

Africa’s underperformance reflects deep infrastructure and policy gaps. Fixed-broadband subscription penetration in Africa was a mere 12 per cent in mid-2023—versus 63 per cent globally—while only 27 per cent of Sub-Saharan Africans subscribed to mobile Internet by late 2023 (Omdia, 2023; GSMA, 2024).

Reliable electricity reached just 47 per cent of the population, and smartphone ownership hovered at 55 per cent, constraining on-ramp access to regulated crypto platforms (Africa Power Transition Factbook, 2024; Statista, 2024).

Regulatory uncertainty compounds these challenges: although Nigeria and South Africa have enacted crypto frameworks (ISA 2024 and FAIS-based CASP licensing, respectively), countries such as Ghana await draft guidelines, Kenya’s Virtual Asset Service Providers Bill remains under debate, and Algeria and Egypt maintain bans or prohibitions (Dadzie-Yorke & Ansah, 2024; CryptoDaily, 2025; Freeman Law, n.d.; ICLG, 2024).

Without coherent laws and enforcement, domestic innovation stalls and liquidity flows offshore to unregulated exchanges.

Consequences, divide

Africa’s digital-asset gap exacts tangible costs. Intra-African trade under the AfCFTA reached $192 billion in 2023—only 15 per cent of total African trade—yet still relies on slow, costly correspondent-bank settlement corridors (PACCI, 2024).

Regulated blockchain rails could reduce settlement times from days to minutes and cut fees by up to 85 per cent. Diaspora remittances—Africa’s largest external-finance source at $54 billion in 2023—carry an exorbitant 7.9 per cent fee on $200 transfers, more than double the SDG target of three per cent (World Bank, 2024). Licensed stablecoin corridors could slash costs below two per cent and deliver near-instant settlement.

Tokenised real estate and SME financing also remain under-utilised: the global real-estate tokenisation market was $3.5 billion in 2024, projected to grow 21 per cent annually through 2033, while African SMEs face a $331 billion financing gap (Custom Market Insights, 2024; IFC, 2018).

Talent flight further weakens local ecosystems: Nigeria—the world’s second-ranked crypto adoption market—accounts for three per cent of global blockchain developers, yet regulatory ambiguity drives many abroad (Mariblock, 2025).

Without urgent reforms, Africa risks ceding both economic opportunity and its brightest innovators to global crypto hubs.

Multi-Pillar road map

Bridging this divide demands a coordinated, multi-pillar strategy. First, African lawmakers should adopt model crypto-asset legislation at the AU or ECOWAS level, defining token categories, licensable activities and enforceable smart-contract provisions, while embedding FATF-aligned AML/CFT and consumer-protection safeguards (IMF, 2023).

Second, regional blocs—ECOWAS, EAC, SADC—must establish a Pan-African Crypto Passport, mirroring MiCA’s passporting regime and supported by mutual-recognition agreements, joint supervisory colleges, and shared intelligence platforms (Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance, 2024).

Third, governments should invest in digital infrastructure: expanding broadband and mobile internet, deploying solar-hybrid mini-grids, and scaling national digital-ID systems (World Bank ID4D, 2024).

Fourth, capacity building through certified blockchain courses, fellowships and dedicated crypto-asset desks in central banks and securities regulators will ensure agile supervision and continuous knowledge exchange.

Conclusion

Africa must choose between embracing blockchain to boost inclusion, entrepreneurship and global integration or risking marginalisation.

Harmonised laws, regional coordination, infrastructure investment and skills development are essential to unlock digital-currency benefits.

With clear precedents available, political will and collaboration will bridge the crypto divide and drive Africa’s prosperity.

The writers are Maritime & Port Expert/AI Consultant/Senior Research Fellow CIMAG/CEO Knowledge Web Centre and a Professor of Naturopathy/Barrister & Solicitor (The Gambia Bar)/Chartered health economics/ President, Nyarkotey College of Holistic Medicine & Technology.

E-mails: kingdavboison@gmail.com & professor40naturopathy@gmail.com