Africa\’s Digital Financial Future – Frimpong Manso Leads the Way
Africa\’s Digital Finance Revolution: A Call for Leadership and Collaboration
Mr Peter Frimpong Manso, the Lead Organiser of the Digital Assets Summit Africa (DASA) 2025, has urged Africa to take a proactive role in shaping the future of digital finance. He emphasized that the continent should not merely observe but lead with solutions tailored to its unique realities and aspirations.
“Around the world, digital assets are redefining how people pay, save, invest, and trade. Global adoption has already surpassed half a billion users. Meanwhile, central banks from Asia to Europe are rolling out digital currencies. If Africa waits too long, we risk being shaped by frameworks we did not help design,” he said.
This call to action was made during a two-day DASA 2025 event held in Accra. The summit aimed to create a trusted platform where policy, innovation, and investment converged to shape Africa’s place in the global digital economy.
The conversation around digital assets, according to Mr Frimpong Manso, goes beyond technology. It is also about inclusion, trust, jobs, and sovereignty. “It is about ensuring that the farmer in Tamale, the trader in Accra, and the entrepreneur in Lagos can benefit from a system that is faster, safer, and more open,” he added.
As the Chief Executive Officer of Promark Elite Ltd, Mr Frimpong Manso highlighted the urgency of adopting digital finance. Whether it is lowering the cost of remittances, unlocking new trade finance opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area, or expanding access to credit through tokenized assets, digital finance has the potential to solve long-standing challenges that have hindered Africa’s economies.
“But this will only happen if we work together with regulators, banks, innovators, and citizens, with a shared vision and responsibility,” he stated.
Mr Frimpong Manso officially launched DASA as an annual platform, emphasizing that it would be a permanent fixture for Africa’s digital finance ecosystem. The summit will continue to serve as a stage where policymakers, innovators, investors, and thought leaders gather to chart the way forward.
Economic Growth and Market Projections
Mr Harold Adlai Agyeman, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Ghana to the United Nations, spoke on the “Impact of Digital Assets in Africa’s Burgeoning Market.” He noted that an annual growth rate of 6.37 per cent was anticipated for 2025-2026, with user penetration rates projected at 5.5 per cent for 2025 and 5.9 per cent for 2026.
According to some projections, the digital assets market in Africa is expected to reach US$5.6 billion by the end of the year, with nearly 76 million users by 2026. However, the market had a total market capitalization of US$2.7 trillion in 2024, and digital assets custody reached around US$708 billion by the end of this year, indicating significant room for growth.
Mr Agyeman pointed out that the scope for growth in the African digital assets market is vast, especially given that the market has been concentrated in key regional hubs such as Nigeria, South Africa, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Ghana. “Even as institutional interest grows, fuelled by better infrastructure and evolving regulations, we continue to see a dominance of stablecoins in the African digital assets market, particularly those pegged to the US dollar, which accounts for nearly half of all digital transactions,” he said.
Africa is indeed experiencing a digital revolution, driven by mobile penetration, fintech adoption, and blockchain innovation. “I believe that the digital assets spectrum remains relevant to deepen financial inclusion on the continent; facilitate the expansion of cross-border trade, in addition to the Pan-African Payments System of the African Continental Free Trade Area, anchored on the AFRIEXIM Bank settlement system,” he added.
Promark Elite Ltd and the Future of DASA
Promark Elite Ltd, the organization behind DASA, is an African-owned company committed to curating platforms that bring together the best of thought leadership, innovation, and partnerships to advance sustainable growth.
In the years ahead, DASA anticipates evolving into more than just a summit. It aims to become a network, a knowledge hub, and a catalyst for policy and investment collaboration across Africa.
