Africa’s digital payments ecosystem will converge in Lagos on 17 and 18 June 2026 as Digital PayExpo returns to the Landmark Centre, Victoria Island, under the theme “Seamless Digital: Fostering Pan-African Market Expansion in the AI Era.” The event will bring together over 3,000 senior executives, policymakers, fintech innovators, and global technology providers at a moment when digital payment penetration among Nigerian businesses is at an all-time high.
Read also: TikTok, ICC launch Digital Commerce Labs to support Nigerian SMEs
How far the market has come
Digital payment penetration among Nigerian adults has reached 82 per cent according to the CBN’s National Financial Inclusion Strategy Report for 2026, a figure that would have been difficult to project just five years ago. Nigeria’s fintech sector now routes approximately ₦600 trillion in annual payments, with platforms including Moniepoint, OPay, Flutterwave, and Paystack collectively serving millions of merchants and SMEs across the country.
Mastercard Economics Institute data shows that 73 per cent of Nigerian SMEs plan to expand their digital payment capabilities in 2026, and 70 per cent are focused on delivering more seamless payment experiences to customers. For businesses that have historically depended on cash transactions, the shift toward digital infrastructure is changing not just how they process payments, but how they access credit, manage cash flow, and build the financial records that open doors to formal financing.
When a merchant’s daily sales are recorded digitally, that data becomes an asset — one that fintechs and increasingly banks are using to underwrite loans that were previously inaccessible because the business had no paper trail.
Read also: GTCO third edition, Take on Squad Hackathon aim to drive digital solutions for businesses
What the expo will address
Digital PayExpo 2026 will feature sessions on artificial intelligence in payments, cross-border commerce, financial inclusion, and the regulatory frameworks shaping Nigeria’s digital economy. Confirmed speakers include Dr. Rakiya Yusuf, Director of Payment Systems Supervision at the CBN, and Dr. Folasade Femi-Lawal, Country Manager and Area Business Head for West Africa at Mastercard.
The event will also provide a platform for SME-focused fintech companies to showcase new products and engage with the institutional buyers, regulators, and investors who shape the deployment environment for digital business tools across Nigeria and the broader African market.
Read also: SMEs face revenue decline without digital presence
What this means for small businesses
The convergence of stronger digital payment infrastructure, embedded finance products, and data-driven credit models is reshaping what it means for a small business in Nigeria to be financially included. Businesses that engage with digital tools are increasingly gaining access to faster payments, automated compliance, and credit products calibrated to their actual transaction behaviour rather than their ability to produce formal documentation.
Nigeria’s SME sector is not waiting for the financial system to catch up. It is building the digital track record that will eventually make the case for credit on its own terms.
