Africa Capital Week 2026 opened on Monday with discussions on how African countries can attract and deploy more capital to grow financial technology and the digital economy.
The first day featured a breakout session on “Capital for Financial Technology & Digital Economy,” bringing together players from the financial markets, technology and investment sectors.
The discussion focused on key areas including mobile payments, digital infrastructure, fintech regulation and interoperability frameworks.
The Principal Secretary for ICT and the Digital Economy, Eng. John Tanui, CBS, was represented at the session by John Kiria, Director of ICT, Partnerships, Research and Emerging Technologies Division.
Kiria said Africa already has the ideas and capital needed to drive its own development, but more needs to be done to connect investors with innovators on the continent.
He pointed to the trust gap between African investors and innovators as one of the major challenges holding back homegrown economic growth.
According to Kiria, building greater confidence between the two groups will be important in ensuring African ideas can attract the funding needed to grow and create opportunities within the continent.
Experts discuss fintech investment
The session brought together experts from the capital markets, investment and technology sectors to discuss the future of financing Africa’s digital economy.
Among the panelists was Pierre Celestin Rwabukumba, President of the African Securities Exchanges Association.
Also taking part were Hempstone Maroria, Founder and CEO of B360 Holdings; Dominic Mutinyu, CEO of Green Margin Capital; Frank Mwiti, CEO of the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE); and Tonnee Ndungu, Founder and CEO of Kytabu Africa and Tribbe Nation.
The discussions highlighted the growing importance of digital finance and the need for stronger systems that can support investment and innovation across African markets.
The focus on interoperability, regulation and digital infrastructure also placed attention on the systems needed to allow financial technology solutions to work more effectively across different markets.
Africa Capital Week 2026 continues with discussions aimed at exploring ways of unlocking capital for businesses and innovations across the continent.
