Cross-border payments is at a crossroads with new innovations and challenges shaping global trade

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January 13, 2025
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4 min read

Over the past seven years, businesses of all sizes and sectors have undergone extraordinary transformations, driven by technological breakthroughs and shifting economic and political conditions. Nowhere is this more evident than in cross-border payments - an essential component of global trade.

The way money moves across borders has changed, with innovative models rapidly emerging to meet the rising demand for seamless transactions. This is especially true in Africa, where intra-continental trade could increase income by $450 billion by 2035, as well as in other emerging markets. At Verto, with the ability to facilitate payouts in more than 170 countries, we’ve witnessed these developments first-hand.

Traditional banking makes way for new innovative solutions

A significant shift in recent years has been the gradual disintermediation of traditional banking systems in cross-border payments. What began as a response to the demand for faster, seamless transactions has gained remarkable momentum with the rise of stable coin infrastructures. Companies like Ripple are building proprietary networks that leverage stable coins to bypass conventional banking channels, providing faster and more cost-effective solutions.

While the regulation of cryptocurrencies remains contentious, especially in many parts of Africa and emerging markets—the regions we serve—promising government-backed initiatives are beginning to emerge. For example, the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) is actively working to enable seamless payments across the continent.

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Verto’s mission is clear: We want to simplify cross-border payments for businesses, and incorporating innovative approaches to sending and receiving money is a big part of this. Intermediary-heavy processes create unnecessary friction — delays, high costs, and inefficiencies that hinder growth. For example, when a Nigerian business pays a vendor in Kenya, the payment first travels through the US payment rail system, causing delays of up to one or two days.

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While fintech companies like ours are changing this, with 99.8% of payments processed by Verto clearing within 24 hours, further innovations can help accelerate progress. For that reason, we’re exploring the integration of stable coins into our payment stack and collaborating with central banks to ensure safety and regulatory compliance.

Geopolitical events create new opportunities

Macroeconomic and geopolitical events have significantly shaped the landscape in recent years, particularly in 2024. A wave of elections in major global economies - such as the USA, UK, France, and India, led to shifts in policies that rippled across global markets influencing economies as well as rates, regulations and processes related to cross-border payments.

A key development for us has been Nigeria’s radical economic reforms under its new government, particularly the unification of exchange rates. While this has simplified transactions by creating a single, market-determined rate, it has also contributed to inflation—currently around 33%—and significant currency volatility. As any founder knows, volatility and liquidity issues make for an unpleasant cocktail. Innovative solutions are emerging to address this. For example, our Effective Treasury Management platform allows users to lock in forex rates when initiating a transaction, ensuring the rate is secured—even if market fluctuations occur. While this progress is encouraging, we must continue to evolve, ensuring that transactions remain seamless and helping mitigate the impact of these challenges.

Looking ahead to 2025, the political and economic landscape remains one to watch closely. In the US, a change in administration could result in shifts in trade policies, tariffs, or protectionist measures, creating uncertainty for businesses engaged in international trade. Our seven years of operations across more than 170 countries have shown us how deeply geopolitical and macroeconomic factors influence currency performance.

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The key question for 2025 is whether the extreme currency volatility of 2024 will persist or stabilise. For instance, how might potential tariffs or policy changes from a new US administration impact highly illiquid currencies like the Nigerian Naira? In any case, businesses operating across borders must remain adaptable and prepared for what lies ahead.

An increasingly global world needs more integrated payment infrastructures

As global trade becomes increasingly borderless, we can expect the rise of homogeneous trade, where businesses demand payment systems as seamless as the exchange of goods and services. Remote work and decentralised teams exemplify this shift. For instance, our teams span Nigeria, Cape Town, Nairobi, and the UK, and we’ve built an infrastructure that makes working across borders feel as seamless as if everyone were in the same office. This trend is not unique to us; businesses across industries are expanding their global reach, trading more internationally, and they will demand the ability to move money with the same ease they move goods and services.

To support this shift, payment systems must enable businesses and individuals to move money effortlessly across borders. In markets like Africa, where currency volatility and liquidity challenges are common, ensuring smooth transactions is even more critical.

Case study: international payments with the African Francophone zone

A region worth focusing on is the African Francophone zone, one of the most fragmented in terms of cross-border payments. While the CFA franc is pegged to the euro, reducing some volatility, challenges remain. Payments can take up to two or three weeks to process, with local banks dominating the competition. However, we’ve made strides in introducing our solutions to this market, paving the way for non-bank players like us to provide seamless cross-border payment capabilities. This progress will be a major step toward reducing reliance on the US dollar for intra-African trade and empowering businesses to trade more efficiently in local currencies.

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The future of payments

As we move into 2025, the future of cross-border payments presents both challenges and opportunities. The trends we’ve observed—such as the disintermediation of traditional systems and the rise of innovative payment infrastructures—highlight a crucial imperative: adapt or fall behind. Businesses, policymakers, and financial service providers must collaborate to address issues like currency volatility, liquidity gaps, and inefficiencies in existing systems. The path ahead will require resilience and foresight, but the potential to revolutionise global trade and payments has never been more within reach.


About Ola Oyetayo

Ola Oyetayo is the Co-Founder and CEO at Verto. With a robust background in finance, consulting, and entrepreneurship, Ola’s career includes significant roles at American Express, Barclays, and Lloyds Bank.  

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