United Bank for Africa (UBA) has integrated its Artificial Intelligence (AI) chatbot, LEO, with the Pan-African Payment and Settlement System (PAPSS) in a bid towards enhancing intra-African trade.
The initiative launched in partnership with the African Export-Import Bank (Afrexim Bank), enables seamless end-to-end transactions across African borders in local currencies.
Announcing the innovation on Wednesday, UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, described the integration as a transformative milestone in Africa’s economic development.
He said it aligns with UBA’s broader mission of uniting Africans through technology-driven financial solutions.
“This feature we are launching today is a reversal of centuries of dependence on foreign intermediaries in intra-African trade,” Alawuba said during the official launch event.
“With PAPSS now integrated into LEO, someone in Accra can send payments to Lagos in local currencies, instantly and without borders. This is true African trade on African terms.”
LEO, UBA’s AI-powered chatbot, is the first of its kind in Africa and now enables customers to initiate and complete PAPSS transactions digitally. Previously limited to UBA branches, the integration extends PAPSS access to 24-hour digital channels, significantly improving convenience, reducing transaction costs, and promoting real-time trade settlements across the continent.
PAPSS, a centralised financial market infrastructure developed by Afrexim Bank in collaboration with African central banks, facilitates instant cross-border payments in local currencies. It aims to eliminate the need for third-party currencies like the US dollar or euro in African trade, a longstanding barrier to intra-African commerce.
Commenting on the development, CEO of PAPSS, Mike Ogbalu, praised UBA for being one of the earliest and most committed partners in the continent-wide initiative.
“UBA was one of the first banks to connect to PAPSS, and now, with the integration into its LEO platform, the bank is taking another bold step toward digitising trade across Africa,” Ogbalu said. “We’re now averaging seven seconds to confirm a transaction. This is a confluence of convenience, reduced cost, and user adoption.”
Ogbalu revealed that PAPSS transactions through UBA have already witnessed significant volumes, particularly across key trade corridors such as Ghana-Nigeria, Cameroon-Chad, and the Mano River Union. Since going live, the platform has processed over 121 billion Ghanaian cedis in just a few weeks.
The integration also drastically reduces transaction costs for users. “We’ve lowered the cost of cross-border payments from about $25 per transaction to just $2, paid in local currency,” Ogbalu said.
Regulatory oversight remains a crucial component of the initiative. Each central bank defines transaction limits within its jurisdiction.
In Nigeria, for instance, individuals can transfer the equivalent of $2,000 without additional documentation beyond standard Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements. Corporate entities are allowed up to $5,000. Some other African jurisdictions permit even higher transaction limits.
According to UBA’s CEO, the bank is also backing the digital push with a $6 billion Small and Medium Enterprises (SME) fund, aimed at empowering African youth and entrepreneurs.
“We must continue to support African SMEs. This collaboration with Afrexim and PAPSS is a critical part of making the trade ecosystem work for them,” Alawuba said.
