Etsy shut out African sellers, SeerBit shows how fintech can bring them back

When Etsy pulled the plug on African sellers earlier this year, thousands of entrepreneurs suddenly found themselves cut off from global markets.

The reason was not demand because buyers across Europe and the U.S. had developed a taste for African handmade goods, from cowrie shell jewellery to Ankara fabrics, but rather a lack of local payment infrastructure.

Etsy wanted sellers to migrate to its new in-house payments system, Etsy Pay, but that system had no support for most African markets.

For many, it looked like a familiar story. A global platform expanding with a one-size-fits-all approach, then retreating when emerging markets proved too complex. But for Omoniyi Kolade, CEO of pan-African fintech SeerBit, the situation underscores both the gaps and the possibilities.

“I think it’s important to first acknowledge why Etsy made the move to Etsy Pay,” Kolade told Technext. “They wanted more control, a unified experience for buyers and sellers, and a simpler fee structure, things PayPal alone couldn’t give them.

“That makes perfect sense from a global product perspective. But here’s the opportunity: if Etsy Pay is meant to be the future of commerce on the platform, then Africa is exactly the kind of market where it should prove its value.”

Kolade reasons that Africa is a payments puzzle waiting to be solved. With over 40 currencies, fragmented payment rails, and an increasing number of digital wallets, the continent is the ultimate stress test for any platform aiming to unify and simplify transactions.

“If you can solve payments in Africa,” Kolade says, “you’ve essentially built a model that can scale anywhere.”

Etsy’s closure of African seller shops may have shut the door on some, but it also highlighted how much opportunity is being left on the table.

Africa’s digital economy is projected to hit $180 billion by 2026. Millions of creators are producing globally sought-after goods: Ghanaian kente fabric influencing haute couture runways, Nigerian shea butter and black soap in European beauty aisles, and Kenyan coffee filling mugs in Los Angeles.

Kolade put it bluntly: “Right now, ‘Made in Africa’ is more than a label, it’s a movement. The world is craving African products like never before.”

For platforms like Etsy, ignoring that movement is more than an oversight; it risks missing out on the loyalty of African consumers.

“African consumers are highly engaged and remarkably loyal,” Kolade said. “Once a platform earns its trust, it’s difficult for competitors to win them over. By prioritising Africa now, rather than later, Etsy wouldn’t just be ticking a box on inclusion; it would be securing long-term competitive advantage and establishing its presence in a rapidly growing and increasingly influential market.”

Fintech as the bridge

So, how do you make this opportunity real?

For Kolade, the answer lies in fintech. Platforms like SeerBit exist to bridge the gap between Africa’s fragmented payment systems and global marketplaces.

“That’s exactly the gap we’re working to close at SeerBit,” he said. “We’re giving entrepreneurs the ability to sell across borders with ease.

Whether that’s handling different payment methods, currencies, or regulatory frameworks, the idea is simple: if you’re a designer in Accra or a craftsman in Nairobi, you should be able to sell to a customer in Paris without worrying if the payment will go through. – Omoniyi Kolade, CEO, Seerbit

When payments are seamless, Kolade argues, they build trust. “It strengthens relationships, and lets entrepreneurs focus on creating and scaling. That’s the role fintech plays here: being the bridge between Africa’s incredible creativity and the global demand that’s waiting for it.”

But, of course, Africa is not an easy market. Its diverse regulatory frameworks have long frustrated global platforms. What is legal tender in one country may be restricted in another.

Kolade doesn’t deny the challenge, but sees navigation as a matter of strategy.

“Our ability to scale comes from identifying the right partnerships. In some markets, that means working with financial institutions like banks, where we can leverage their licences and infrastructure instead of duplicating efforts. In other markets, we operate directly because we already have the licences and demand from customers to support growth.”

SeerBit tries to turn a fragmented landscape into a network of opportunities by layering regulatory access on top of customer demand and partnerships.

“A key part of this is enabling cross-border trade,” Kolade said. “We use our technology to bridge demand and supply across different markets, making it easier for businesses to expand despite regulatory complexities.”

But Kolade insists localisation alone is not enough. The future, he says, is interoperability, making sure Africa’s systems can connect to global standards without losing their local flexibility.

“Beyond localising payments, we believe the real innovation lies in interoperability and inclusivity at scale,” he explained. “Emerging markets can’t afford to be afterthoughts as global platforms push toward standardisation.”

SeerBit is building API-driven infrastructure designed to make plugging into Africa as easy as transacting in New York or London. “Whether that’s cards, mobile money, bank transfers, or newer methods like QR,” Kolade said, “the goal is to make it seamless.”

The fintech also looks beyond just banks and merchants, advocating cross-border partnerships with regulators, telcos, and global platforms. And with technologies like embedded finance, Kolade sees the chance to future-proof African merchants, ensuring they can connect to global systems without losing their local edge.

Is Etsy’s withdrawal a missed opportunity, or a second chance?

For African creators, Etsy’s withdrawal is a painful reminder that access to global markets often depends on infrastructure beyond their control. But for fintech entities like SeerBit, it is also a rallying call.

That is a chance to prove that African markets are not too hard, just too important to ignore.

Kolade sees the path forward as one of collaboration rather than exclusion. “The good news is Etsy doesn’t have to do it alone,” he said. “Africa already has some of the most advanced fintechs in the world—companies like ours that are powering mobile money, multi-currency settlement, and cross-border flows at scale.

“By leaning on those partnerships, Etsy Pay could plug into infrastructure that’s already trusted and battle-tested, rather than reinventing the wheel.”