Africa Embraces Stablecoins Via IOTA to Unlock $70B Pan-Continent Trade Tech

Why It Matters

By leveraging stablecoins and distributed‑ledger technology, ADAPT could dramatically lower transaction costs and fraud, accelerating trade integration and economic growth across Africa’s largest free‑trade area.

Summary

The African Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat and the IOTA Foundation have launched the Africa Digital Access and Public Infrastructure for Trade (ADAPT) initiative, backed by the Tony Blair Institute and the World Economic Forum, to embed USDT stablecoin settlements across the continent’s 55 member states by 2035. The platform will provide instant cross‑border payments, verifiable digital trade documents, and interoperable digital identities, aiming to cut border delays by more than 50% and reduce annual payment fees of $25 billion. Pilot projects in Kenya and Rwanda have already lowered documentation costs, reduced paperwork by up to 60%, and shortened clearance times from six hours to about 30 minutes. ADAPT projects that digitalization could double intra‑African trade, unlocking roughly $70 billion in new economic value.