How Accrue is building a human network for stablecoin payments across Africa

In a continent where sending money across borders often feels like navigating a maze of mismatched systems, a Nigerian startup is rolling out a clever fix that blends digital innovation with the reliability of face-to-face service.

Accrue, a three-year-old fintech outfit, has shifted gears from guiding novice investors into cryptocurrencies and stocks to crafting a seamless payment network powered by stablecoins. Their brainchild, CashRamp, taps into a web of trained agents spread across 11 countries, turning local cash into borderless digital dollars and back again with minimal fuss or fees. It's a setup reminiscent of the mobile money boom, but supercharged for the crypto era.

The spark for this pivot came from a simple headache. Co-founder Clinton Mbah watched a friend in Ghana burn a whole day shuttling between banks in Accra, only to come up empty-handed on wiring funds to Nigeria. That frustration, coupled with explosive growth in their early on-ramp tool, convinced the team to double down on cross-border flows. What started as a side feature skyrocketed from a sliver of revenue to the lion's share in mere months.

At the core of CashRamp lies a human element that sets it apart from the usual automated crypto gateways. Picture this: A vendor in Ghana hands over cedis to a local agent, often a familiar face from the mobile money scene or even a street-level currency trader. The agent swaps it for stablecoins at the going rate, zips them digitally to another agent in, say, Nigeria, who then converts everything back to naira and drops it straight into the recipient's account. No cryptic wallets or tech jargon required; just quick, peer-to-peer handoffs that sidestep hefty middleman charges like the double-dip fees that can eat up 3% or more on traditional transfers.

"We saw how in Ghana, mobile money rules the roost, while Nigeria leans on bank wires and South Africa sticks to cards and ATMs," Mbah explained. "All these patchwork methods kill any shot at smooth pan-African payments. That's the knot we're untying." His partners, Adesuwa Omoruyi and Zino Asamaige, nod to the grit involved in winning over skeptical regulators, who once eyed crypto with deep suspicion. "We've had to prove we're not out to undermine local currencies," Omoruyi noted, while Asamaige stressed the nuance of Africa's patchwork markets. "Nigeria's drowning in fintech options, but head to Francophone West Africa, and folks are starving for basics."

This people-first approach builds instant trust, especially for the millions wary of faceless algorithms. Agents pocket a tidy 15% cut on payouts, fueling a groundswell of interest: more than 16,000 hopefuls have knocked on the door, though just 500 have cleared the vetting so far. Backed by a fresh $1.58 million seed round earlier this year, Accrue stretched from seven markets to eleven, eyeing even broader reach.

Big names are catching the stablecoin wave too, with outfits like Flutterwave teaming up on blockchain settlements and heavyweights such as Visa and Western Union dipping toes into the pool. For Accrue, it's validation of a bigger bet. "Stablecoins aren't some fringe thing anymore," Mbah insisted. "By decade's end, they'll be the go-to for shifting cash around." As adoption climbs, CashRamp could quietly weave itself into the fabric of daily trade, from market stalls to migrant remittances, proving that in Africa's financial frontier, a little human connection goes a long way toward unlocking the next big leap.