At the recently concluded Canada-Africa Fintech Summit (CAFS) 2025 in Toronto, Oneremit’s Chief Executive Officer, Hammed Adewumi Afenifere, delivered an impactful session on how stablecoins are transforming cross-border payments for African businesses, students, and families.

Addressing an audience of policymakers, banking executives, fintech innovators, and investors, Afenifere emphasized that stablecoins are no longer abstract digital assets but practical financial tools already reshaping everyday transactions. He spotlighted their growing relevance in critical areas such as tuition payments, trade settlements, and business remittances between Nigeria and Canada.

“We’ve seen firsthand how stable digital currencies help African businesses and families bypass unnecessary friction when sending money abroad, particularly from Nigeria to countries like Canada,” Afenifere explained. “These solutions are giving people speed, reliability, and access in ways traditional banking has often struggled to deliver.”

Oneremit, a cross-border fintech company focused on Africa, has built its operations around solving this exact challenge. By integrating stablecoins into its payment rails, the company enables faster, more transparent, and cost-efficient transfers unlocking new opportunities for SMEs and communities previously limited by conventional financial systems.

Afenifere noted that the future of finance cannot be driven by disruption alone but must also be grounded in trust and collaboration with regulators and institutions. He called for a balanced approach where innovation is designed to be safe, inclusive, and scalable. “Trust is the currency of finance. For stablecoins to scale responsibly, we must ensure that users, governments, and institutions all benefit from the value they bring,” he stressed.

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The summit also provided an avenue for knowledge exchange. Afenifere highlighted how discussions with policy experts and industry veterans broadened his perspectives on striking the right balance between governance and innovation. “Their advice and stories gave me new perspectives to carry forward,” he reflected.

CAFS 2025, hosted under the theme “Accelerating Canada-Africa Fintech Collaboration for Talent, Innovation, Investment, and Economic Growth,” convened global thought leaders to chart the future of fintech partnerships across both regions. For Oneremit, its participation reinforced the company’s vision of creating borderless payment solutions that connect Africa to the world.

Closing his remarks, Afenifere reaffirmed the company’s mission: “Our goal is simple. It is to make cross-border finance accessible, fast, and transparent. Stablecoins are not the future; they are the present. And if designed with collaboration and trust at the center, they can unlock Africa’s economic potential while connecting us more closely with partners in Canada and beyond.”

By sharing its perspective at CAFS 2025, Oneremit demonstrated not only its role as an innovator but also as a bridge-builder between Africa and the global financial ecosystem.

Oneremit Puts Africa’s SMEs at the Heart of Fintech Innovation

The room was filled with conversations about the future of finance. Bank executives, regulators, and tech innovators from two continents gathered at the Canada-Africa Fintech Summit (CAFS 2025). Amid the spotlight on big players, one message cut through with unusual clarity: Africa’s future in global trade depends on its small businesses.

That was the heartbeat of Oneremit’s contribution at the summit. For years, the company has been quietly working behind the scenes to solve a problem most African SMEs know all too well, the uphill battle of making and receiving payments across borders.

A trader in Lagos shipping goods from Toronto.
A Nigerian parent paying tuition for their child in Vancouver.
A wholesaler in Abuja partnering with a Canadian supplier.

Different stories, same problem: payments that should be simple often become expensive, slow, and uncertain.

Oneremit is rewriting that story. By integrating stable digital currencies into its system while staying aligned with regulatory standards, the company is giving SMEs the kind of freedom they’ve long deserved, the ability to trade, invest, and partner globally without being held back by outdated systems.

But what stood out at CAFS wasn’t just the technology. It was the vision. Oneremit didn’t come to Toronto to showcase another fintech tool. It came to remind leaders that in Africa, growth starts small with the small shop owner, the emerging exporter, the family business dreaming bigger.

“When you empower SMEs to trade across borders with ease, you’re not just moving money, you’re moving possibility,” the company emphasized during the summit’s conversations.

And that message resonated. Industry leaders spoke about Africa’s SMEs as the backbone of its economy. Oneremit’s approach building trust, transparency, and speed into cross-border payments positioned it as more than a service provider. It became a bridge, linking ambition in Africa to opportunity abroad.

For Canada and Africa, the timing couldn’t be more critical. Canada is expanding its Africa Strategy. Africa is experiencing a surge of youthful entrepreneurs hungry for growth. Connecting the two requires exactly what Oneremit brings to the table: a simple, secure way to move value.

As the summit ended, one idea lingered in the air: the future of trade is borderless, but only if the systems we build allow it. Oneremit left Toronto having made its case powerfully clear, Africa’s SMEs are ready. And Oneremit is ready with them.