What happens when crypto meets fintech in Africa?

Ahead of the Africa Money and DeFi Summit, Hashing It Out host Elisha Owusu Akyaw (GhCryptoGuy) spoke with Andrew Fassnidge, founder of Africa Tech Summit, and Enoch Antwi, CEO of Dnar — a finance application that has decided to rebuild and reenter the Ghanaian market this quarter. The conversation covered the intersection between cryptocurrency developments on the African continent and the financial technology sector. Fassnidge shared his experience from the perspective of an investor and conference organizer who has seen the genesis of multiple unicorns on the content, and Antwi offered his thoughts from the perspective of a founder in both sectors. 

Fassnidge opened the podcast with an explanation of the state of fintech in Africa, explaining that despite the growth of financial technology applications on the continent, the rise of failed startups that raised huge capital has cast a dark shadow over the ecosystem. The lack of sustainability of innovations in the space has harmed investor confidence and made the masses wary of using local financial applications. Additionally, the state of local currencies has created an appetite for storing wealth in foreign currencies. This trend is making decentralized finance and stablecoins popular in African markets.