Cross-Border Insights #1

As part of our information-sharing mandate at world-class events, ahead of Africa Accelerating 2025, IPT Africa is offering regular commentaries on solutions to challenges commonly ascribed to transacting across multiple markets from Canada

The Challenge of Collecting Payments Across African Markets – A Canadian Business Perspective

For Canadian companies expanding into Africa — whether in mining, infrastructure, education, clean tech, or advisory services — collecting payments from clients, partners, or project sites remains a major operational hurdle.

Despite rapid growth in trade opportunities, the reality on the ground includes:

  • Fragmented financial systems: Each country in Africa operates under different payment rules, with limited cross-border alignment.

  • Low traditional banking penetration: In regions like West and East Africa, mobile money has overtaken traditional banking as the main channel for transactions.

  • Regulatory complexity: KYC, AML, and foreign currency policies vary from market to market.

  • Delayed or unreliable settlement: It’s not uncommon for payments from African partners to take 5–10 days to reach Canadian accounts — or get stuck altogether due to lack of infrastructure or missing documentation.

Why This Matters for Canada-Africa Trade:

Whether you’re a Canadian engineering firm working on a government-funded infrastructure project in Ghana, or a Vancouver-based consultancy servicing clients in Nairobi, cash flow disruption caused by collection delays can affect your bottom line, financing cycles, and long-term credibility in-market.

What’s Working:

  • Local currency collection accounts aligned with regulatory frameworks are enabling smoother fund inflows.

  • Multi-channel acceptance — including mobile money, bank transfers, and even digital wallets — is increasing access and flexibility.

  • Digitised onboarding and regional compliance expertise reduce the documentation friction many Canadian firms encounter when entering new African markets.

Canadian businesses that structure their collection strategy based on regional financial behaviours, not just global norms, are seeing stronger ROI and faster market penetration. IPT Africa supports businesses and institutions with local collection capabilities and compliance-aligned payment infrastructure across more than 20 African markets

 

SOURCE: IPT Africa, a member of The Canada-Africa Chamber of Business

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