Africa Tech Summit (ATS) 2025 in Nairobi brought together industry leaders, innovators, and investors shaping the future of technology on the continent. As the headline sponsor for the second year in a row, Raenest led important discussions on fintech, cross-border transactions, and trust in financial systems. Here’s a look at what happened at ATS 2025 and the key takeaways from this year’s event.
One of the most popular masterclasses at the event was Scaling Beyond Borders: Unlocking Global Opportunities with Raenest, hosted by Tobi Otokiti (VP of Product, Raenest) and Richard Oyome (COO and Co-founder, Raenest). The session covered the ongoing challenges African businesses face with cross-border payments, such as high transaction fees, slow settlements, regulatory hurdles, and limited global banking access.
The speakers shared how Raenest is providing real solutions through its services by:
- Helping businesses receive payments in multiple currencies (USD, EUR, GBP).
- Making it easy to convert and manage funds.
- Cutting costs on international transactions.
- Simplifying KYC and AML processes.
- Making international spending easier for businesses.
Real-life success stories also showed how startups and businesses use Raenest to grow beyond Africa, including a Nigerian company collecting foreign payments across the US and UK and a Ugandan business easily paying partners and vendors across the continent.
Trust is a big deal in Africa’s fintech industry, and Sodruldeen Mustapha, Co-founder & CTO at Raenest, gave a powerful talk on Redefining Trust in Financial Systems: Transparency and Security in African Fintech.
In his keynote speech, he pointed out that with financial fraud and compliance issues being a major concern, fintech companies must make trust a competitive advantage. This means being clear about transactions, having strong security measures, and following regulatory rules to build confidence with businesses and customers.
Raenest’s presence went beyond keynotes and masterclasses. Ewomazino Oyibotha, Global Expansions Lead at Norebase, shared how Geegpay, Raenest’s product for individuals and Raenest have been great tools for personal and business financial management, making cross-border payments smoother.
Abdulazeez Ogunjobi, CEO of Billbox, also shared how Raenest has helped his startup send and receive USD payments. He advised startup founders to stay consistent but, most importantly, know when to pivot if their original plan isn’t working.
Beyond the insightful discussions, one of the biggest highlights of ATS 2025 was the Raenest Mixer. This post-event gathering was the perfect opportunity to meet fellow attendees, exchange ideas, and discuss the key takeaways from the summit in a more relaxed setting.
The event was buzzing with meaningful conversations as investors, tech leaders, and startup founders connected over their shared experiences and ambitions. People engaged in casual yet impactful discussions about fintech trends, cross-border payments, and scaling African businesses globally. Icebreakers like Raenest Bingo added a fun twist, helping attendees network naturally and engagingly and as the evening progressed, attendees enjoyed great food, drinks, and games while continuing to form valuable industry connections. The mixer truly reinforced the collaborative spirit of ATS 2025, making it clear that the future of African fintech is not just about innovation but also about building strong relationships within the ecosystem.
In all, Africa Tech Summit Nairobi proved that Africa’s tech space is growing fast, with businesses focusing on building trust and expanding their reach. Raenest continues to lead the way in helping African startups and companies compete globally. If you missed the event, you can check out our socials for video recaps.
