The Highest Impact Dollar: Why Africa’s Future Depends on Fintech Infrastructure
Tim Carson, CFO at Platcorp
Africa has long been a staple of impact investment discussions. But look at the data, and you’ll see this conversation has yet to convert to capital. Despite the continent’s prominence in impact investing narratives, the money flowing in is still relatively low. This disconnect between perception and reality can be a problem, discouraging investors who believe the region already ‘has enough’. Yet it’s also an opportunity. A dollar can go a very long way in Africa – especially when it’s funding local fintech operators.
Africa’s capital gap
Join a conversation on impact investing and within two minutes the word ‘Africa’ will likely come up. The continent is often held as an impact investment case study, so you’d be forgiven for thinking it’s flush with funding. But the statistics tell a different story. According to the Global Impact Investing Network’s State of the Market 2025 report, based on its 2025 Impact Investor Survey, Sub Saharan Africa represents 10% of surveyed impact assets under management. Derived by adding the data for Western Africa (2%), Eastern Africa (3%), Southern Africa (4%), and Middle Africa (1%) from the report’s regional allocations, it shows the area may attract much talk, but this doesn’t fully translate to investment. What’s increasingly become apparent is there is a persistent gap between the prominence of Africa in impact investing conversations and the proportion of capital actually deployed.
There’s a reason Africa is so often cited: the case for investment is clear. Africa has the youngest population in the world, with 70% of Sub Saharan Africa under the age of 30. While other areas increasingly worry about an ageing population, Africa has an influx of young talent representing huge opportunities for growth. At the same time, the continent faces major infrastructure needs. Estimates put annual infrastructure requirements at roughly $130 to $170 billion, with a substantial shortfall versus current financing. The result is a continued unmet demand for reliable power, clean water, sanitation, and transport, and a 2% annual reduction in Africa’s GDP growth.
The fintech effect
The silver lining in this is that such gaps create opportunity. Where basic systems are missing or under-scaled, incremental capital can deliver disproportionate gains, especially in sectors such as health, agriculture, and financial inclusion. Put simply, the baseline is lower, so the potential for measurable improvement per invested pound is often much higher than in mature markets.
Fintech is a prime example of this opportunity for exponential growth. Not only is it a high-growth industry in itself – fintechs account for eight of Africa’s nine unicorns – it’s an enabling layer that multiplies impact across lending, healthcare, access, education, and regional trade. The sector sits at the centre of Africa’s development equation as it enables the rails that other sectors depend on. Digital identity is a good case study, for instance. A lack of robust identity and verification puts up barriers between people and crucial services and makes it harder for providers to deliver them efficiently. Fintech can change that. By making digital identities easier to achieve, while maintaining strict security, it helps increase access to infrastructure that is crucial in fuelling growth.
Agriculture and cross-border trade
Further amplification is seen in the confluence of fintech and agriculture. Solutions that increase financial inclusion, such as mobile-based lending platforms, are proving vital in a sector that represents the primary source of livelihood for over 70% of Africa’s population and rests on smallholder farmers. However, these farmers have traditionally been shut out of financial systems due to a lack of collateral, credit history, or proximity to financial institutions. Creating systems that allow farmers to overcome these barriers and access vital loans, while still doing so ethically and responsibly, is essential to the region’s growth. Not only this, supporting the agricultural sector is critical in helping increase Africa’s food security and improving climate resilience.
Then there’s fintech’s role in supporting cross-border trade and micro, small and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs). Fintech solutions are vital in helping reduce cross-border fees for MSMEs, enabling them to embrace the opportunities of international trade like their larger, more established peers. Such solutions can also support in insulating businesses navigating currency volatility: a particular strain for smaller African businesses.
This magnifying power means impact investors must stop treating African fintech as a niche interest and begin recognising the role it plays in the continent’s development trajectory. The sector is a core multiplier and is quickly becoming the infrastructure layer on which many future impact models will come to depend. Fintech is not a side interest of impact investment – it’s the foundation of it.
Africa’s future depends on turning the conversation around impact investment into real action. Specifically, this means investing in fintech. Money spent here has an exponential impact, supporting critical industries such as agriculture, and improving people’s access to vital services. If investors want the biggest pay-off for their dollar, it needs to be spent on African fintech.
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