NEWS
As Artificial Intelligence and digital technologies compress decades of economic evolution into months, Africa faces a critical turning point. A new report by Boston Consulting Group( BCG), Advancing Africa’ s AI and Digital Economy, warns that the continent risks repeating a familiar pattern: exporting raw data to feed proprietary AI models built abroad, only to buy the technology back under expensive licences.
Africa’ s future depends on digital foundations AI
While AI is expected to contribute $ 15.7 trillion to global GDP by 2030, Africa’ s digital economy accounts for just 5 % of GDP, compared with the global average of 15 %, and is projected to reach only 8.5 % by 2050.
“ Africa’ s core challenge is no longer about technology adoption; it is about tech production,” said Hamid Maher, BCG Managing Director and Senior Partner.“ Winning requires capturing value from the technology stack itself – building, governing, and retaining our data and talent locally.”
Africa represents 18 % of the world’ s population but has less than 1 % of global data centre capacity, while large language models support fewer than 2 % of its estimated 2,000 languages. BCG also highlights structural challenges including fragmented markets, a shortage of AI talent and dependence on imported technology.
To strengthen Africa’ s AI foundations, the report recommends expanding public-private partnerships to build digital infrastructure, pooling regional investment through frameworks such as the AfCFTA Protocol on Digital Trade and adopting open-source digital public goods to reduce licensing costs and retain technical capabilities.
Cregis expands into Africa
Cregis, an enterprise digital asset infrastructure platform, has announced its expansion into Africa, marking the latest step in the company’ s global growth strategy. The move builds on Cregis’ expansion across Asia-Pacific, the Middle East and Latin America, as demand for enterprise digital asset infrastructure continues to grow worldwide.
Africa is one of the fastest-growing digital asset markets globally. According to Chainalysis, Sub-Saharan Africa received more than $ 205 billion in on-chain value between July 2024 and June 2025, up 52 % year on year. Growth has been driven by stablecoin payments, cross-border transactions and the broader adoption of digital financial services. At the same time, regulatory frameworks are becoming clearer across several major markets, creating a stronger foundation for enterprise adoption.
For Cregis, these trends indicate that the market is entering a new phase.
“ We’ ve seen this pattern before,” said Shawn Yan, Founder and CEO of Cregis.“ Adoption comes first. As businesses grow, the focus shifts to managing digital assets securely, efficiently and in a way that keeps pace with evolving regulatory expectations. That’ s where enterprise infrastructure becomes essential, and it’ s the same transition we’ re beginning to see across Africa.”
Cregis has already onboarded enterprise customers in the region and is expanding its local business development efforts across the continent, with a particular focus on markets such as Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa, where digital asset ecosystems are among the most developed. The company is working with businesses including stablecoin payment providers, OTC desks, crypto exchanges and digital banks, as demand for enterprise infrastructure continues to increase.
The expansion builds on nearly a decade of experience supporting enterprise customers across high-growth markets. In Asia-Pacific, Cregis has worked with thousands of businesses in markets where digital asset adoption often outpaced regulation. www. intelligentcio. com
INTELLIGENT CIO AFRICA
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