Growing stablecoin use drives demand for crypto-to-fiat infrastructure in Africa

The growing use of stablecoins across Africa is increasing demand for infrastructure that can convert digital assets into local currency and connect them with everyday payment services.

An International Monetary Fund analysis estimated that Nigeria received about $59 billion in crypto-asset inflows between July 2023 and June 2024.

The IMF said stablecoins had developed into a meaningful cross-border payment channel for households and small businesses, particularly where conventional transfers were costly or difficult to access.

Across Sub-Saharan Africa, Chainalysis estimated that more than $205 billion in on-chain value was received between July 2024 and June 2025, approximately 52 per cent more than in the preceding year.

The firm linked part of the growth to the use of digital assets for remittances, trade and other practical financial activities.

One of the companies developing infrastructure for this market is Breet, a cryptocurrency payment platform operated by Inbreetic Technologies Limited.

Breet began as a consumer-focused crypto off-ramping service and has expanded into business payment infrastructure through an application programming interface that allows companies to receive supported cryptocurrencies, convert them and settle the proceeds in local currency.

Techpoint Africa reported in January 2026 that Breet’s API was designed to allow businesses to accept stablecoins such as USDT and USDC while the conversion and settlement processes were handled in the background.

Breet’s public technical documentation shows that the infrastructure can generate deposit addresses, monitor incoming blockchain transactions, send real-time notifications and automatically settle converted funds into linked bank accounts.

Connecting crypto with everyday payments

Usman Balogun, co-founder of Breet, said the usefulness of cryptocurrency depends partly on whether users can convert it into money they can spend.

“Payment rails are the bridge between the blockchain and real life—your bank account, bills and card,” Balogun said.

He explained that Breet’s conversion system was designed to reduce the number of manual steps involved when individuals or businesses receive cryptocurrency and want the equivalent value settled in local currency.

The company also provides its infrastructure to fintech platforms that want to introduce cryptocurrency or stablecoin features without independently developing wallets, blockchain-monitoring systems and conversion tools.

“A business can embed crypto acceptance and settlement into its product through an API rather than building the entire infrastructure from scratch,” Balogun said.

Breet reports that it has processed more than $1 billion across over five million transactions. The company says the figures reflect increasing use of its crypto-to-fiat services, although they have not been independently audited for this report.

Multiple payment channels reduce reliance on one provider

The importance of payment-channel redundancy became more visible during an intermittent disruption affecting the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System in May 2026.

TheCable reported that banks and fintech companies experienced delayed transactions, with some platforms notifying customers that transfers and other payment services had been affected.

Balogun said Breet uses approximately five payment partners and 10 banking channels, allowing transactions to be redirected when one channel experiences delays.

“Our system is designed to reduce dependence on a single payment provider,” he said. “When one channel slows down, transactions can be directed through another.”

Breet did not provide independently audited uptime or transaction-failure data from the NIBSS disruption. Its account should therefore be understood as the company’s explanation of how its redundancy system operated during the incident, rather than independent confirmation that every transaction was unaffected.

Stablecoin-linked cards expand spending options

Breet is also developing stablecoin-linked card services intended to allow customers to use supported digital assets for expenses such as travel, accommodation and online shopping without first completing a separate manual conversion.

The model is already being adopted more broadly by established payment networks. 

Visa explains that stablecoin-linked cards allow users to hold value in stablecoins while paying through conventional card networks. The digital asset is converted during the payment process, while the merchant receives settlement through the existing payment system.

Visa has identified everyday purchases, remittances, employee expenses and cross-border business payments as potential uses for the model. However, this wider industry development does not independently confirm the launch, availability or adoption level of Breet’s proposed card product.

Balogun said connecting cryptocurrency with local-currency settlement and conventional card networks could make digital assets more practical for individuals and businesses.

“The daily things people care about should not remain a crypto problem,” he said.

“The infrastructure should handle the conversion and settlement in the background.”

The expansion of crypto payment infrastructure will still depend on regulatory compliance, reliable banking relationships, sufficient liquidity and the ability of providers to manage disruptions across both blockchain and conventional payment networks.

For companies such as Breet, the opportunity lies in providing the technical layer that allows digital assets to move beyond trading and become usable within existing financial and commercial systems.