Standard Chartered and Zodia Markets have published a joint report advocating for the expansion of local currency stablecoins across Africa, arguing that digital assets pegged to the South African rand, Ghanaian cedi, and Malawian kwacha could streamline cross-border trade.
The analysis suggests that traditional foreign-exchange mechanisms impose significant costs and delays on intra-African commerce, creating a structural inefficiency that stablecoins are uniquely positioned to address.
By tokenizing local currencies, businesses could settle transactions more rapidly while maintaining exposure to familiar fiat denominations, rather than relying solely on US dollar-pegged instruments.
This development aligns with a broader trend of South African firms increasingly adopting cryptocurrency networks to facilitate continental trade.
Industry leaders have previously described the burden of foreign-exchange controls and liquidity constraints as a primary driver for seeking blockchain-based workarounds.
The push for localized stablecoins also intersects with ongoing regulatory discussions in South Africa.