As Africa accelerates efforts to unify its payments landscape and deepen intra-continental trade, the inaugural Pan-African Payments and Settlement System Cowry Conference in Lagos emerged as a defining platform for shaping the future of cross-border financial integration.
Central to this dialogue was DeRemi Atanda, managing director of Remita Payment Services Limited, who delivered strong interventions on how interoperability, fintech collaboration and digital infrastructure will determine Africa’s economic trajectory.
Held recently at the Lagos Continental Hotel, the conference convened central bankers, commercial bankers, fintech leaders, regulators and policymakers to examine the theme “Connecting Payments. Accelerating Africa’s Trade.”
The event was hosted by the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System under the guidance of Afreximbank, the African Union and the AfCFTA Secretariat
Throughout the conference, the message was consistent: Africa is deliberately designing a payments ecosystem rooted in its realities, ambitions and economic future.
With PAPSS, the AfCFTA gains the operational backbone it needs to convert trade policy into executable commerce and commerce into continental prosperity.
In his keynote, PAPSS Chief Executive Officer, Mike Ogbalu III, traced today’s payment challenges to historical fragmentation and currency silos that continue to hinder Africa’s ability to trade with itself.
He stressed that PAPSS is being built as a shared infrastructure that preserves competition while enabling collective value creation.
“PAPSS is an ecosystem built on centralised value in a way that does not diminish the competitive advantage of any participant. It is a vision that began decades ago and is now finally operational,” he said.
Mr Atanda contributed practical industry insight across two high-level panel sessions focused on interoperability, real-time settlement, and fintech-enabled trade.
On the first panel, themed “The Role of Switches in Enabling Interoperability and Real-Time Settlement,” he spoke alongside leading payments ecosystem stakeholders from eTranzact, GHIPSS, NIBSS, ZECHL, and PAPSS.
Mr Atanda emphasised that payments are the invisible arteries of Africa’s economy, noting that “Africa must first be connected through payments – that is the true starting point.”
He further described PAPSS as the practical executor of Africa’s long-standing integration ambition, stating that “PAPSS has moved the vision from concept to execution, enabling payments not just within countries, but seamlessly across borders.”
Mr. Atanda stressed that switching infrastructure should be viewed as an enabler rather than an end in itself.
“Switching is not what the man on the street interacts with; it is simply the engine behind the system. What truly matters is what consumers are able to do,” he noted.
He further highlighted fintech companies as increasingly central to Africa’s commercial activity, underscoring the growing importance of deep integration between banks and fintech operators.
“One of the most significant developments is the interface with the fintech ecosystem, because fintechs are rapidly becoming key drivers of trade across Africa,” he explained
On the second panel themed “Moving Money, Moving Goods under AfCFTA – Fintech’s Role,” Mr Atanda returned to the stage alongside leaders from Interstellar, Yellow Card, Conduit Technology, Brij Technologies and Ibex Frontier.
The discussion centred on financial inclusion, usability, and the role of digital payments in unlocking commerce at scale across Africa.
He highlighted the real-world impact of aggregation and interoperability on everyday users, noting how seamless payment experiences are reshaping cross-border transactions.
“Irrespective of where you bank locally, you should be able to make cross-border payments using one number. The middle layer is disappearing. From your mobile wallet, phone, or bank account, you can transact directly,” he said.
According to Mr Atanda, Africa has moved beyond merely addressing fragmentation in payments infrastructure.
“We have gone past fixing fragmentation. Now the focus is on creating new opportunities and new use cases,” he added.
“You do not have to be everywhere on your own. When you operate within a shared ecosystem built on common standards, collaboration becomes scale,” he remarked.
In closing, he described PAPSS as a consumer-centred system that decentralises access.
“PAPSS is putting power directly in the hands of people, through multiple touchpoints that make cross-border transactions easier and more inclusive,” he said.
Mr Atanda’s participation positioned Remita Payment Services Limited as both a Nigerian fintech leader and a continental infrastructure contributor.
His contributions underscored that Africa’s trade aspirations will only be realised if payments, policy and platforms evolve together.
