/PRNewswire/ — UnionPay International actively participated in the 7th edition of the prestigious Africa Fintech Forum, held at the Villa Rosa Kempinski Hotel in Nairobi, Kenya. This strategic initiative marks a decisive step in strengthening its brand equity and expanding its presence within the pan-African fintech ecosystem, while accelerating innovation in digital payments and developing cross-border financial infrastructure.
As the continent’s premier fintech event, this forum brings together high-level executives from the fintech, banking, payments and digital innovation sectors across Africa. UnionPay leverages this high-visibility platform to position itself not only as a traditional payments system, but also as a strategic infrastructure partner capable of connecting local African digital payment ecosystems with global commerce.
This year’s forum is being held in a context of profound change in global trade routes. Following China’s historic policy of removing tariffs and easing trade barriers for 53 African countries, the bilateral trade volume between China and Africa is experiencing unprecedented growth. As local agricultural exporters, manufacturing technology companies and SMEs expand to meet this massive demand, the need for a seamless, institutional-grade cross-border payment settlement system has become an urgent operational requirement. At the event, UnionPay highlighted its strategic direction focused on integrations through open APIs, the deployment of locally adapted QR codes and robust virtual card issuance structures, designed to help regional fintechs capitalize on this multi-billion dollar business boom.
“The African fintech ecosystem stands out for its mobile-first dynamics and entrepreneurial agility,” said Mr. Feng Chen, Managing Director of the African Branch of UnionPay International. “UnionPay’s mission is to serve as a global catalyst for these local innovators. With China having eased its customs duties for 53 African countries, the trade corridor is expanding exponentially. By providing seamless integration with our global network, we are enabling Kenyan and African fintechs to address complex cross-border challenges, open the doors to global e-commerce for local merchants, and establish the world-class secure payment architectures needed to support this massive bilateral growth. »
During collaboration sessions held at Villa Rosa Kempinski, UnionPay representatives interacted with local fintech pioneers to showcase its robust, ready-to-deploy product infrastructure, built around three key strategic pillars:
1. Global Acceptance and QR Routing
Fintechs can seamlessly integrate UnionPay’s global QR code infrastructures via open APIs. This allows users of their local digital wallets to make secure payments to millions of merchants around the world or transact through highly interoperable local digital wallets. For fintechs and payment gateways, UnionPay provides infrastructure that natively supports UnionPay as well as other international payment systems. This significantly reduces payment challenges for international travelers and optimizes transaction success rates.
2. Issuance and white label
Fintechs and digital banks can partner with UnionPay to instantly issue system-compliant physical or virtual prepaid cards, enabling local consumers and businesses to effectively take advantage of the growing opportunities offered by global e-commerce. Fintech platforms operating on the continent can directly leverage existing local network integrations to facilitate intra-African transactions, bypass foreign exchange frictions and reduce overall operational costs.
3. Ready-to-deploy ecosystem infrastructure
In order to accelerate the time-to-market for African technology companies, UnionPay highlighted that fintechs do not need to deploy new payment infrastructure. Many well-established international payment service providers and Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) solution providers already offer ready-to-use, production-ready APIs for UnionPay.
By leveraging its expanding network of local issuers, acquirers and integrations with technology hubs, UnionPay is actively transforming the way African consumers and businesses interact with the global economy. The company continues to prioritize building fast-to-market, cost-effective partnerships that drive transaction volume and create shared value across the financial services value chain.
As Kenya strengthens its Silicon Savannah status, UnionPay remains committed to investing in open-loop partnerships, regulatory compliance standards and payment technologies that will define the future of inclusive digital finance across Africa.
À propos de UnionPay International
UnionPay International (UPI) is focused on expanding the global UnionPay card acceptance network. UnionPay cards are accepted in 183 countries and regions, including 51 African countries. UnionPay International remains a leading player in digital transformation and financial inclusion across the continent.