Grey adds direct African currency routes, skips the dollar
Grey says businesses in Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana can now pay across borders without first converting into US dollars, and it has launched a salary account.
The facts
- According to TechCabal, Grey says it has built direct currency conversion routes so African businesses can pay suppliers without converting to US dollars first.
- CEO Idorenyin Obong said customers in Nigeria, Kenya and Ghana can collect and send money, backed by liquidity arrangements across several currencies.
- Grey says it has processed more than 40 million transactions and nearly $5 billion in payments since inception, and Grey Business has handled nearly $100 million since February.
- Grey launched Paycheck, a salary account for people paid in dollars, pounds or euros, which links to its Pouch savings feature.
Case notes · Danny's take
Why it matters
A Nigerian business paying a Kenyan supplier often goes naira to dollars to shillings. Every extra step costs money and time. Cutting the dollar out of the middle is a real fix for small traders, if it works at scale. The numbers are the company's own claims, so treat them as claims until independent data backs them up. The BIS point in the story shows the wider problem: too many African payments still route through banks outside the continent.
For traders
If you move money across African borders, compare the full cost and the delivery time on each route, not just the headline rate. Watch whether stablecoin-linked payment demand keeps growing, since Grey says it drove part of its business volume.
For builders
Payment reliability and FX liquidity are still the hard parts, not the app. Direct local currency pairs, as well as systems like PAPSS, show where the gap is. If you build here, be clear on delivery times and support, because that is where users complain.
Not financial advice. Do your own investigation.
This story was summarised with AI from TechCabal's reporting and checked against our editorial policy. Danny's take reflects his views. Disclaimer.
Danny Walter
Founder of Moon Republic, Volt Terminal and Moon Republic Academy. Author of The Market Is a Crime Scene and After the Applause.