Everything gets matched and queued immediately.
From Oxford seminar rooms to the financial arteries of a continent, three founders are attempting to replace Africa's fragmented foreign exchange infrastructure with something more durable and just. Stabyl, a Nigerian fintech startup, has raised $2.7 million in pre-seed funding to build an institutional FX platform that automates the matching of currency trades between banks and payment providers — work that today still happens through phone calls and manual negotiation. The ambition is not merely commercial efficiency, but the deeper proposition that a continent moving billions of dollars daily deserves infrastructure equal to that scale.
- Africa's cross-border payment system is held together by phone calls and handshakes — banks negotiate FX rates manually, creating dangerous gaps between agreement and execution where markets can move against them.
- Nigeria alone recorded nearly $7 billion in net foreign exchange inflows in a single month, yet the plumbing beneath that volume remains fragmented across scattered liquidity providers with no common marketplace.
- Stabyl's central limit order book automates what was manual — buy and sell orders from institutions match instantly, eliminating the delay and rate-drift that cost banks and payment companies real money.
- The platform stitches together two financial worlds that rarely speak cleanly to each other: stablecoin rails on blockchain networks and traditional naira settlement through KongaPay, with DFNS handling digital asset custody.
- Regulatory winds are shifting in Nigeria — the Central Bank has lifted crypto banking restrictions and the SEC has introduced a VASP framework — giving Stabyl a narrow but real window to build with regulators rather than around them.
- With $2.7 million secured and expansion into additional African currency pairs pending approvals, Stabyl is positioning itself not as a competitor to payment providers but as the liquidity infrastructure they all depend on.
A fintech startup conceived in Oxford business school classrooms is now attempting to build the foreign exchange infrastructure that African banks and payment companies have long needed. Stabyl, founded by Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, Zachary Schwartzman, and Michael Anyi, has closed a $2.7 million pre-seed round led by Konga, the e-commerce group. The capital will fund regulatory licensing, product development, and continental expansion — beginning with the naira-to-dollar corridor that moves billions daily but remains stubbornly inefficient.
The three founders began developing the idea between 2021 and 2022 during their MBA studies at Oxford. What started as conversations about stablecoin technology widened into a clearer diagnosis: Africa's foreign exchange market, despite its enormous scale, operates through scattered liquidity networks that force institutions to negotiate rates by phone and wait for manual confirmations. In February 2026 alone, Nigeria recorded $6.92 billion in net FX inflows — yet the infrastructure beneath that volume had not kept pace.
Stabyl's answer is a central limit order book — an automated marketplace where banks and payment service providers post buy and sell orders that match instantly. The platform eliminates the gap between negotiation and execution where exchange rates can shift against participants. Liquidity is aggregated from participating institutions, with reserves maintained through selected partners to ensure transactions clear even under pressure.
For settlement, the platform bridges two worlds: stablecoins running on blockchain networks and traditional fiat banking through KongaPay for naira settlement, with DFNS handling digital asset custody. Ekeh was direct about the limits of stablecoins alone — users still need to convert into local currencies, so both rails must connect seamlessly. The platform remains blockchain-agnostic, choosing networks based on cost, speed, and client needs.
Institutions integrate Stabyl's liquidity through APIs into their treasury systems. Rather than profiting from exchange rate spreads, the company charges transaction fees — a model built on volume rather than margin. The logic, as Schwartzman explained it, is that a growing liquidity pool creates value for the entire ecosystem.
The regulatory environment is shifting in Stabyl's favour. Nigeria's Central Bank has lifted restrictions on crypto-related banking, and the SEC has introduced a framework for virtual asset service providers. Stabyl views existing players like Onafriq, Yellow Card, and Fincra not as rivals but as prospective customers — institutions that need liquidity infrastructure, not a replacement for their own services. What began as an MBA project is now positioned as foundational plumbing for commerce across a continent.
A startup born in Oxford business school classrooms is now building the plumbing that African banks and payment companies have needed for years. Stabyl, a fintech firm focused on institutional foreign exchange infrastructure, just closed a $2.7 million pre-seed round led by Konga, the e-commerce group. The money will go toward regulatory licensing, product development, and expanding across the continent—starting with the naira-to-dollar corridor that moves billions daily but remains fragmented and inefficient.
The three founders—Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, who previously served as co-CEO of Konga Group; Zachary Schwartzman; and software engineer Michael Anyi—conceived the idea between 2021 and 2022 while pursuing their MBA at Oxford. What began as conversations about stablecoin technology evolved into something broader: a recognition that Africa's foreign exchange market, despite its scale, operates through scattered networks of liquidity providers that force banks and payment companies to make phone calls, negotiate rates, and wait for confirmations. In February 2026 alone, Nigeria recorded $6.92 billion in net foreign exchange inflows, yet the infrastructure for moving that money remained stubbornly manual.
Stabyl's solution sits at the infrastructure layer, invisible to consumers but essential to institutions. Rather than a consumer app, it functions as a central limit order book—think of it as an automated marketplace where banks and payment service providers post buy and sell orders that match instantly. Michael Anyi described the shift plainly: the platform removes the manual process of making calls, negotiating rates, and coordinating transactions. Everything gets matched and queued immediately. The old way meant exchange rates could shift between negotiation and execution. The new way eliminates that gap.
The platform aggregates liquidity from participating financial institutions and maintains reserves through selected partners to ensure transactions clear even during periods of high demand. For settlement, Stabyl bridges two worlds: stablecoins (USDT and USDC for now) running on blockchain networks, and traditional fiat banking through KongaPay, which handles naira settlement. Digital asset custody comes through DFNS. Ekeh emphasized that stablecoins alone cannot solve Africa's foreign exchange problem—users still need to convert into local currencies, so the infrastructure must connect both rails seamlessly. The platform remains blockchain-agnostic, selecting networks based on transaction costs, speed, and what clients need.
Institutional customers integrate Stabyl's liquidity directly into their treasury management systems through APIs. The company doesn't profit from exchange rate spreads—the traditional way payment networks make money. Instead, it charges transaction fees on trades executed through the platform. Schwartzman explained the logic: the goal is to grow the liquidity pool. As more institutions execute more transactions, the entire ecosystem creates greater value. Volume, not margin, drives the business.
The timing aligns with a shifting regulatory landscape in Nigeria. The Central Bank lifted restrictions on cryptocurrency-related banking services, and the Securities and Exchange Commission introduced a framework for virtual asset service providers. Schwartzman noted that Stabyl prefers to build the infrastructure correctly from the start, in collaboration with regulators rather than around them. The company views existing players like Onafriq, Yellow Card, and Fincra not as competitors but as potential customers—their infrastructure is designed to provide liquidity to payment providers and financial institutions, not to replace them.
Ekeh framed the Konga partnership as alignment with a larger vision. Konga's ambition is to become the engine of trade and commerce across Africa, and foreign exchange liquidity is the fuel that powers that engine. Stabyl's infrastructure, he said, is critical to making that vision real. The company is initially focused on the naira-dollar corridor but plans to expand into additional African currency pairs as regulatory approvals come through. What started as an MBA project is now positioned as critical infrastructure for continental commerce.
Citações Notáveis
Our goal is to connect these participants on one platform, creating the deepest and most accessible liquidity pool on the continent.— Zachary Schwartzman, Stabyl co-founder
Stablecoins are effective, but users still need to convert into local currencies. Stabyl is connecting stablecoin rails with fiat banking rails because you can't separate the two.— Prince Nnamdi Ekeh, Stabyl founder
A Conversa do Hearth Outra perspectiva sobre a história
Why does Africa's foreign exchange market need a new platform when banks and payment companies already exist?
Because those institutions are fragmented. A bank in Lagos needing dollars doesn't have one place to source them efficiently. They call multiple liquidity providers, negotiate rates separately, and by the time they agree, the rate has moved. Stabyl consolidates all that into one automated marketplace.
So this is really about speed and transparency, not about replacing banks?
Exactly. We're infrastructure. Banks and payment companies will use us to do their jobs better. We're not trying to be the bank or the payment company. We're the layer underneath that makes their operations faster and cheaper.
The platform uses stablecoins but also connects to traditional banking. Why both?
Because Africa's economy doesn't run on stablecoins alone. Businesses need naira, dollars, and other local currencies. Stablecoins are efficient rails for moving value, but you still need to convert into fiat. We bridge both worlds so institutions can move seamlessly between them.
How do you make money if you're not taking a cut of the exchange rate?
Transaction fees. We want volume, not margin. The more trades that flow through the platform, the more valuable it becomes for everyone. If we squeezed spreads, we'd discourage usage. Instead, we grow the pool and take a small piece of every transaction.
What's the biggest risk you face?
Regulatory uncertainty, though it's improving. We also need enough liquidity providers on the platform from day one. If institutions come and there's no depth, they'll leave. Building that critical mass is the real challenge.