Paying a supplier in China can be a frustrating part of doing business for African companies, even when the money is already sitting in a foreign-currency account.
Grey wants to make that process simpler.
The Y Combinator-backed cross-border fintech has launched Chinese yuan payouts, allowing customers to convert their US dollar, euro, British pound or stablecoin balances into yuan and send the money directly to bank accounts in China.
For Grey, the move is about more than adding another currency. It is an attempt to build a smoother payment route between African businesses and one of their biggest trading partners.
China was Nigeria’s largest source of imports in 2025, accounting for 31.22% of imports in the fourth quarter, according to the National Bureau of Statistics. Nigerian businesses buy everything from electronics and machinery to vehicles and industrial equipment from Chinese suppliers.
But paying those suppliers can involve multiple steps, currency conversions and payment channels, creating delays for businesses that need to move quickly.
“We have seen customers delay purchases, put transactions on hold, or walk away from opportunities because paying a partner in China requires unnecessary complexities,” said Idorenyin Obong, Grey’s CEO and co-founder.
“By enabling direct Chinese Yuan payouts from existing Grey balances, we are making payments simpler so that more people and businesses can participate in global trade.”
The new yuan service is available to both Grey Business and personal customers. Companies can use it to pay suppliers and manufacturers, while individuals can make payments for expenses such as education, travel and retail purchases in China.
The launch builds on Grey’s broader push into business payments.
In February, the company launched its business platform, giving African startups and small and medium-sized businesses access to US dollar corporate accounts, international payments, foreign-exchange conversion and stablecoin transactions.
By June, Grey said the platform had processed $61.4 million in payment volume. USDC and USDT, two dollar-backed stablecoins, accounted for the largest share of its cross-border transactions.
China gives Grey another way to put those balances to work.
Instead of stopping at helping customers receive or hold foreign currency, the company can now connect those balances to direct payments in one of Africa’s most important trading markets.
It is not alone in seeing the opportunity.
Other fintechs have also been building payment services around the Africa-China corridor. UK-based remittance company LemFi supports yuan transfers to China, while Raenest lists China among its international payout destinations. Nigerian fintech Daya, which uses stablecoins for cross-border payments, has also been targeting trade settlements involving China and Hong Kong.
The size of the trade relationship helps explain the growing interest.
Nigeria imported $13.03 billion worth of goods from China in 2025, while South Africa imported $23.57 billion. Kenya imported about $4.31 billion worth of Chinese goods in 2024.
Nigeria’s trade with China is heavily weighted towards imports. Bilateral trade reached nearly $19.9 billion in 2024, but Nigeria recorded a trade deficit of about $13.3 billion.
The imbalance has continued into 2026. Nigeria imported about ₦5.09 trillion, or roughly $3.81 billion, worth of goods from China in the first quarter, while exports remained much lower.
For the businesses behind those numbers, the issue is practical: a company may find a supplier, agree on a price and have the money available, but still face difficulties getting the payment to the other side.
That is where fintech companies are trying to intervene.
Stablecoins have added another layer to this emerging payment infrastructure. Rather than relying entirely on traditional correspondent banking systems, fintechs can use stablecoins to move value across borders and then convert it into the currency needed by the recipient.
Grey’s yuan payout product follows that model by connecting its customers’ existing foreign-currency and stablecoin balances directly to Chinese bank accounts.
The bigger opportunity is to make cross-border trade feel less like a series of separate financial systems and more like one connected network.
For African businesses buying from China, that could mean fewer payment hurdles, faster settlements and less time spent figuring out how to move money across borders.
For Grey, the bet is that as African businesses trade more internationally, the winning payment platforms will be those that can help them not only receive money from abroad, but also spend it easily in the markets where they do business.