NALA hires ex-TerraPay exec to lead compliance
The African-founded payments firm has named Ashraf Aly its global head of compliance and risk as it expands its stablecoin payments business.
The facts
- Ashraf Aly, previously Group Head of Compliance at TerraPay, has joined NALA as Global Head of Compliance & Risk.
- He will lead compliance and risk across NALA and Rafiki, its business payments platform, and oversee money laundering reporting officers in the UK, EU, US and Canada.
- Rafiki launched in March 2024 and has processed $1 billion in volume, according to the company.
- In May 2026 NALA secured a credit facility of up to $50 million to pre-fund stablecoin payments, and a job listing from August said the new head would help expand its US licences from the current states to more than 30.
Case notes · Danny's take
Why it matters
Moving money across borders is a trust business. Stablecoins make it faster, but the rules are still being written, and regulators are watching closely. A firm that hires a senior compliance lead while it scales stablecoin payments is telling you where the real bottleneck is. Not the technology. The licences.
For builders
If you build payments or stablecoin rails for Africa, compliance is part of the product, not paperwork you add later. Licences, MLRO coverage and regulator relationships are what banks and partners check first, so plan for them early.
Not financial advice. Do your own investigation.
This story was summarised with AI from Benjamindada'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.