Stablecoin use is rising in Africa, with people using cryptocurrencies beyond cross-border trade in areas such as remittances, savings, and payroll systems, cryptocurrency company Yellow Card said in a report.
The growing adoption in Africa mirrors a wave of rising stablecoin use across the globe, reflected in the growth of the market capitalization of the cryptocurrencies from $5 billion in early 2020 to $230 billion in May 2025. Yellow Card said its operations in 20 African countries — particularly Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa — as well as other emerging markets have seen it process $6 billion in transactions, mostly in Tether and USD coin.
The company said 70% of its stablecoin customers use cryptocurrencies for remittances and savings. But the report noted they’ve also been used in other ways such as for crop insurance in Kenya, as a store of value for tech startups against inflation, and to enable cost-effective payroll systems across multiple jurisdictions with different currencies.
