In 2022, Appzone rebranded as Zone after becoming the first licensed payment infrastructure company leveraging blockchain technology in the country. Since then, it has processed over N1 trillion in transactions on its blockchain network, recording 100 million transactions at an average of N10,000 each.
At the time of rebranding, Obi Emetarom, Zone’s chief executive officer, said, “Our road map is to extend the network to incorporate banks and fintechs across Africa.” Today, the company says it processes ATM transactions for more than a dozen banks, and its Point-of-Sale (PoS) solution is gaining traction.
“Our PoS eliminates chargebacks and allows for same-day settlement, which has resonated deeply with both banks and fintechs,” stated Olayiwola Osoba, VP, Marketing and Corporate Communications, Zone.
Despite this growth, the adoption of blockchain-powered infrastructure has been relatively slow, constrained by legacy systems, regulatory concerns, and trust issues. “It takes time to build,” Osoba noted.
Blockchain is a decentralised digital ledger that provides secure, transparent, and efficient transactions without intermediaries. According to Enhancing Financial Innovation & Access (EFInA), it could increase Nigeria’s GDP by $29 billion by 2030.
Over 90 percent of banks in the United States and Europe are exploring blockchain’s potential. In Nigeria, adoption is still in its infancy, but momentum is building with the Central Bank of Nigeria warming to the technology. The government launched its National Blockchain Policy (NBP) in May 2023, acknowledging blockchain’s potential to transform financial services.
Currently, Zone is the sole provider of blockchain infrastructure for financial institutions in the country after it was licensed as a payment switch by the CBN in 2022. Its platform decentralises the routing and settlement of digital payments between participating financial institutions, enabling banks and fintechs to process transactions directly with one another, cutting out intermediaries.
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This eliminates failure points and costs associated with intermediaries in traditional payment networks. For customers, this means immediate refunds for failed transactions, without the hassle of filing complaints at physical bank locations.
“We are enabling a reliable, frictionless and interoperable payment experience at scale for financial institutions on its network,” stated Sunday Agbi, vice president of Operations at Zone.
Initial scepticism is gradually giving way to a growing uptake in blockchain adoption in financial services, Osoba said.
“The driving force behind this acceptance is twofold: First, the regulatory landscape is evolving positively, with increasing recognition of blockchain’s role in improving financial stability. Second, banks and businesses are seeing firsthand the benefits of decentralised payment infrastructure—lower costs, fraud mitigation, and improved service reliability,” he highlighted.
In a boost for adoption, the Nigeria Inter-Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) recently partnered with Zone to enhance interoperability across the PoS payment value chain. Osoba noted that this validates years of behind-the-scenes groundwork.
This comes amid a sharp rise in PoS transactions, leading to the need for increased capacity to reduce downtime. PoS transactions (merchant and withdrawal) rose by 77.35 percent to N85.92 trillion in the first six months of 2024.
Osoba noted that this growth is reflecting on the company, which now serves over 10 million cardholders. To maintain performance at scale, the company says it is constantly improving its network’s horizontal scalability, adding more nodes to handle increasing loads without service degradation.
“We are also upgrading our consensus protocol and exploring parallel execution to enable faster processing at scale. Beyond raw performance, we are improving automation in areas like smart contract validation, real-time compliance screening, and dispute resolution,” said Osoba.
As adoption continues, the fintech notes that it is building out new use cases, including merchant acquiring, bill payments, and cross-border remittance. In addition, the firm is developing asset-backed token infrastructure to support digital currency issuance by regulated institutions.
Still, blockchain has yet to reach its full potential in the financial sector. Collaboration between traditional banks, fintechs, and regulators remains essential.
“Regulatory sandboxes and industry forums can facilitate open discussions and real-world testing, ensuring compliance while fostering innovation. Additionally, interoperability should be a priority, allowing blockchain-powered payment networks to integrate seamlessly with traditional banking systems,” said Agbi.
Looking beyond Nigeria, Zone says it aims to replicate its regulated blockchain infrastructure across Africa, creating interconnected networks that support real-time fiat and digital currency transactions across borders.
Cross-border payment challenges in Africa persist, with platforms like the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS), despite support from 15 central banks, yet to fully overcome the hurdles of dollar dependence and fragmented corridors.
“We are already laying the groundwork with pilot programs for cross-border use cases in 2025. The short-term vision is a continent-wide regulated blockchain grid—what we call the “Internet of Value for Africa” but in the long term, we’ll take a global-facing approach to enabling payments for global financial institutions,” Osoba added.
