DTI-A, Next Up @APD26: Clinton Mbah says blockchain can revolutionize cross-border payments

Clinton Mbah, Co-founder and CEO of Accrue, believes blockchain is far from being hype, especially in Africa. In his view, Africans stand to gain the most from the technology, particularly when it comes to cross-border payments and financial access.

He shared these thoughts at the Powered by Drive to Inspire — Africa (DTI-A) NextUp breakfast meeting, held at the Accra International Conference Centre on Wednesday, 4th February 2026, on the sidelines of the Africa Prosperity Dialogues 2026.

During the discussion, Mbah explained how expensive and slow it is to send money across African borders using traditional banks. He gave an example of a Ghanaian user who needed to send money to a Kenyan bank account to organise a trip. To send just $1,000 through the banking system, the user would have lost close to $100 in fees , about 10 percent , and still had to wait days for the money to arrive.

“With blockchain and stablecoins, that entire process becomes much simpler. Transactions can settle almost instantly, at any time of the day, and at a fraction of the cost,” Mbah said.

He explained that Accrue is working to upgrade existing mobile money systems by using blockchain behind the scenes. Through an agent network model, mobile money agents are given access to stablecoins, allowing funds to be settled on the blockchain in less than 90 seconds, while users continue using familiar mobile money and cash services.

“With this model, the maximum fee is about two dollars,” he noted. “When you compare that to the bank route with correspondent banks, delays, and added risk the difference is clear.”

Mbah said the agent network approach was intentional, especially in Ghana where many people are not deeply crypto-savvy. By relying on agents people already trust, blockchain becomes accessible to the mass market without forcing users to understand the technology itself.

“People don’t need to know how blockchain works to benefit from it,” he said. “They just keep using the systems they already know, while blockchain quietly improves efficiency in the background.”

He added that Africa’s strong mobile money culture puts the continent in a unique position to take advantage of stablecoins for trade, remittances, and entrepreneurship, describing blockchain as “a blessing rather than a curse” for African economies