STABLECOINS | Leading African Fintech, NALA, Partners with Noah to Launch a Stablecoin Settlement Network on Regulated Rails

A major milestone in stablecoin-powered payments has been reached after Noah – a global payments infrastructure provider – and NALA – an emerging markets fintech – announced a strategic partnership to launch a new cross-border settlement network that leverages stablecoins to make international money movement faster, cheaper, and compliant.

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This network is designed to address systemic bottlenecks that have long plagued cross-border payments into Africa, Asia and other emerging economies – where settlement delays, trapped liquidity, and steep fees have made international transfers slow and costly.

Traditional cross-border transfers depend on legacy correspondent bank systems that can take three to five business days or more to settle and often charge high fees – remittance corridors in some regions still average close to 9% in costs.

The new Noah–NALA network aims to upend this by enabling near-instant USD collection and local currency payout, operating 24/7 and independent of banking hours. This model combines real-time stablecoin rails with regulated on-and off-ramps – a growing trend in payments infrastructure seen across global fintech innovation.

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How the Network Works

At a high level, the settlement network stitches together two complementary capabilities:

1.) Global USD Collection (Noah)

• Businesses receive USD via regulated virtual accounts issued by Noah.
• Incoming bank transfers are converted in real time into stablecoins (e.g., USDC).
• Noah handles onboarding, KYC/AML compliance, and transaction monitoring, providing a regulated gateway into the stablecoin ecosystem.

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2.) Local Distribution (NALA + Rafiki)

• Once funds are converted into stablecoins, they pass into NALA’s Rafiki payments infrastructure API.
• Rafiki connects directly with local banks and mobile money networks across Africa and other emerging markets.
• The network supports compliant bilateral flows between stablecoins and local currencies, backed by 10+ regulatory licences held by NALA.

Together, these rails deliver real-time settlement and local currency payouts, dramatically reducing time, cost, and friction compared with legacy methods.

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Use Cases & Market Impact

The Noah–NALA settlement network is positioned to support a broad suite of payment flows that are critical for businesses operating across borders:

🔹 Global Payroll & Freelancer Payouts

Companies can pay workers and contractors in local currency with USD-denominated settlement at near-instant speeds.

🔹 Cross-Border Treasury & Liquidity Management

Enterprises gain real-time control over liquidity across jurisdictions, reducing reliance on trapped capital in prejuiced bank accounts.

🔹 Value Preservation via USD Holdings

Access to virtual USD accounts provides businesses and consumers in volatile currency environments with a practical hedge.

🔹 Merchant Collections & Local Payouts

Platforms can collect USD globally, then pay out locally — a compelling value proposition for e-commerce and marketplaces.

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Stablecoins as Settlement Rails

While stablecoins are often discussed in crypto circles as speculative instruments, this latest initiative underscores their utility as settlement rails within regulated infrastructure.

Rather than replacing fiat currencies, stablecoins serve as a high-speed bridge asset, enabling value to be transmitted globally before final distribution into local currencies – similar to how some enterprise payment networks (e.g., Fireblocks Network for stablecoin payments) are building rails that merge blockchain efficiency with compliance and liquidity controls.

This marks a broader shift in the financial ecosystem: from correspondent banking and batch settlement models to real-time, API-driven frameworks that combine digital assets with regulated fiat rails.

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Shah Ramezani, Founder & CEO, Noah, emphasised that the collaboration tackles deep structural inefficiencies:

“For years, emerging markets have been underserved by global payment infrastructure that was never designed for its scale, speed, or realities… Stablecoins are not the story on their own — they are the rail that finally makes instant, compliant USD settlement possible at scale.”

Benjamin Fernandes, Founder & CEO, NALA, noted the demand for stablecoin infrastructure in emerging markets:

“Access to compliant USD collection and stablecoin settlement at scale has been one of the biggest constraints for global businesses operating in these regions.”

Emerging markets’ digital payments volumes are projected to exceed $1.5 trillion annually by 2030 – a segment where speed, cost, and liquidity access can make or break businesses.

By embedding stablecoins into regulated infrastructure and integrating local distribution channels, the Noah–NALA network positions itself as a settlement layer for the next generation of global money movement.

The move could fundamentally shift how merchants, platforms, and enterprises handle cross-border value flows into and within the world’s fastest-growing economies.

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