Ghana and the United Kingdom have initiated discussions to establish a digital trade finance corridor, harnessing cutting-edge technology to address Ghana's estimated $7 billion annual trade financing gap. This partnership, centered on the Neofingo digital network, aims to connect Ghanaian exporters and African fintech firms directly with UK neobanks, with the aim of connecting small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) exporters with the international trade finance system.

The initiative's announcement, made at a forum convened simultaneously in London and Accra by ODI Global, Ghana's 24-Hour Economy Authority, and the AfCFTA Secretariat, gathered regulators, financiers, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and technologists. Neofingo is designed as a shared digital infrastructure platform, streamlining trade documents, compliance data, and letters of credit. Organisers said the retreat of correspondent banking has left exporters, especially small and medium-sized ones, unable to access letters of credit.

CLOSING THE FINANCE GAP

Ghana's trade finance gap, estimated at $7 billion a year, is part of a broader $120 billion shortfall across Sub-Saharan Africa, according to the organisers. "It rebuilds trade finance as shared infrastructure, so that a shea butter exporter in Tamale can access the same digital letter of credit as a commodity desk in the City of London. That is what structural transformation looks like," stated Presidential Adviser on the 24-Hour Economy, Augustus Goosie Tanoh, at the Neofingo forum.

Dr. Sara Pantuliano, Chief Executive of ODI Global, underscored the economic upside. "Our research suggests that through effective implementation of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol, Ghana could boost its GDP by $3 billion in the longer term and potentially create up to 600,000 high-quality jobs." She added, "A UK-Ghana Digital Trade Corridor could help address existing gaps in trade finance and build trust at the financial level. We join as convening partners, helping build a community of practice around the development of such a corridor."

Ben Ainsley, Deputy Trade Commissioner at the British High Commission in Accra, highlighted the partnership's relational depth. "The UK and Ghana are already connected by people, history, and language. Neofingo will add a financial layer to that connection and make it easier for businesses here and in the diaspora to trade, invest, and grow together."

TECHNOLOGICAL FOUNDATION

Neofingo leverages Ghana's progressive fintech policies alongside the UK's Electronic Trade Documents Act 2023, which gives legal recognition to electronic trade documents. It incorporates open standards like ISO 20022 for payments messaging and the International Chamber of Commerce's eUCP for electronic letters of credit. It also draws on recent developments in the UK-Africa remittance corridor and leverages the AfCFTA's digital trade infrastructure (the AfCFTA Hub) and the recently launched London to Accra platform, supported by the 24-Hour Economy Authority and the Office of the Mayor of London.

The forum was to examine what governance, standards and institutional architecture a UK-Ghana Digital Trade Finance Corridor would require in practice, and how to build the multi-stakeholder community needed to make it a reality. Participants included trade finance institutions, UK and African fintech leaders, development finance bodies, multilateral organizations, legal experts, and SMEs.

BROADER TRADE CONTEXT

Earlier in the week, Ghana and Colombia signed a deal to establish a direct shipping link between the Port of Tema and Cartagena.

POLICY BACKDROP

President John Mahama signed the 24-Hour Economy Authority Bill into law in February 2026. ODI Global's research links effective implementation of the AfCFTA Digital Trade Protocol, which the corridor is designed to support, to a potential $3 billion GDP gain and up to 600,000 jobs for Ghana. Pantuliano said such a corridor could help “build trust at the financial level”.