Crypto in Africa: ‘High Crypto Adoption Does Not Equal High Trust’ – Trust Wallet’s Dami Odufuwa Says

What to Know

• Africa is one of the fastest-growing crypto markets, with Sub-Saharan Africa receiving over $205 billion in on-chain value in 2025, a 52% year-on-year increase.
• Dami Odufuwa (Head of Communications, Trust Wallet) warns that high usage does not equal confidence.
• Trust is proven through real-world reliability: accessible funds, functional products, local-language support, time-zone-appropriate service, and long-term presence.
• Many global platforms mistake large user bases for product-market fit, while users still rely on informal workarounds or peer support due to poor official customer service.
• Companies must invest in localised support, recognise Africa’s diverse economic realities, and maintain presence beyond bull markets.

Africa is routinely cited as one of the fastest-growing crypto markets worldwide. Report after report points to rising transaction volumes, wallet downloads, and grassroots usage in countries like Nigeria, Kenya, and South Africa.

According to the Chainalysis 2025 Geography of Crypto Report, between July 2024 and June 2025, Sub-Saharan Africa received over $205 billion in on-chain value, up about 52% from the previous year. This growth makes it the third fastest-growing region in the world, just behind APAC and Latin America.

On the surface, it is an adoption success story. These numbers are not to be undermined, but there’s a fragile reality that lies just beneath them.

Why High Crypto Adoption Does Not Equal High Trust

Dami Odufuwa, Head of Communications at Trust Wallet and former PR lead for Binance across Africa, insists that the metrics don’t tell the full story.“Adoption, in that sense, can be misleading,” she said in a recent interview with Outset PR. In economically unstable regions like Africa, people turn to crypto out of necessity – for protection from inflation, cross-border payments, or access to ‘safe-haven’ financial tools. But high usage alone doesn’t signal confidence. It doesn’t automatically mean users feel protected, informed, or valued.”

Many global Crypto platforms often overlook that gap between usage and trust. It’s easy to mistake large African user numbers as loyalty, when in reality a significant portion of those users are operating out of economic need rather than belief in the product.

They use a platform because it’s available, has the necessary on-ramps and off-ramps, or is what their community currently uses. But that doesn’t mean they trust it with their data, their savings, or their long-term financial security.

Odufuwa, who co-founded Nigeria’s Feminist Coalition and was closely involved in the #EndSARS movement, draws a direct line between communications philosophy and the durability of user relationships. For her, trust has to be actively built, and it’s only proven under real-world constraints.

“Trust here is reflected in whether users can access their funds, whether the product works under real constraints, whether support is available in the right language and time zone, and whether the company stays present beyond short-term growth cycles,” she says. “Local credibility requires repeated proof that the company understands what people need from the product.”

Those requirements sound obvious, but they’re frequently deprioritised when growth numbers are coming in strong. A platform might see thousands of daily users across Nigeria and assume that product-market fit has been achieved. 

But those users might still rely on informal workarounds, translate English-language interfaces themselves, or seek help from their trading community because official customer support is either unreliable or nonexistent in their time zone. 

That distance is part of why local platforms and solutions often command greater trust, even if they don’t match the global giants in asset variety or liquidity. When a team speaks your language (literally and culturally) and shows up actively in your market, that is one place where trust solidifies.

How to Build Genuine Trust as a Global Crypto Exchange in Africa: Treat It as Intention, Not Attention

For Odufuwa, the fix starts with a deliberate shift in how communications and operations are prioritised inside crypto companies. Instead of treating the African market as a single, monolithic audience, companies need to recognise the different economic realities, languages, and user behaviours across the continent.

They need to invest in localised support, ensure that critical information reaches users in languages they’re comfortable with, and maintain a presence even when it’s not a bull market.

“Communication is the infrastructure of trust,” she said during the conversation. In other words, users who feel informed and heard are more likely to believe in the product’s long-term intentions.

That also means avoiding the trap of overpromising through aggressive marketing. If high adoption numbers are driven by necessity, the risk of eroding trust is even higher when things go wrong, as delays, restrictions, or sudden account freezes hit users with fewer safety nets. Without a foundation of consistent, honest communication, that usage can evaporate or move elsewhere almost overnight.

Key Takeaway for Global Crypto Exchanges With African Users

The takeaway for companies looking at Africa is to stop reading user numbers as automatic, unshakeable proof that trust exists and start treating local credibility as something that has to be earned repeatedly. 

By investing in local language support, time-zone–appropriate service, and a genuine long-term presence, global platforms can begin to convert necessity-driven usage into genuine confidence.

As Odufuwa puts it: “Treat trust as your primary intention, not attention.”