Nairobi is Africa’s top fintech city, according to the Global Fintech Rankings for 2021.

If you have ever thought of starting a Fintech in Nairobi or are in the process of starting one in Kenya, you are probably on the right track. 

2021 Global Fintech Rankings shows that Nairobi has Africa’s largest fintech ecosystem with Kenya’s commercial nerve center climbing 26 places to 37th place in the world ranking. Global Fintech Ranking is a survey that analyzes growing centers, fintech firms and trends. 

The Ranking shows that Nairobi is the only city from Africa in the top 50 cities worldwide. This report follows the release of the Global Startup Ecosystem Index 2021that revealed that Nairobi has surpassed Lagos as Africa’s top startup hub. Lagos plummeted to 93rd place in the 2021 Global Fintech Ranking and Accra slipped to number 151 in ranking.  

Nairobi at 37 worldwide

The 2021 index had data from over 60 Fintech Associations worldwide covering over 83 Countries and 256 Cities. 

Nigeria dropped five places to 57th place in the country rankings, while Kenya rose 11 places to 37th place and South Africa was ranked 44th.

An algorithm examines data recorded by StarupBlink and confirmed by Findexable to determine ranks.

According to Findexable, its unique algorithm avoids subjective input (such as interviews) and solely evaluates statistics like the amount of fintechs in a given region or city, as well as their qualities (aspects like web presence, monthly visits, customer base, and market value).

In the United States, San Francisco has the largest fintech ecosystem, followed by London, New York, Sao Paulo, Tel Aviv, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

While London, New York, and San Francisco remain global financial centers, additional newcomers such as Seychelles, Rwanda, Tunisia, Zimbabwe, and Somalia have joined the party.  More than 20% of the 83 countries in the 2021 ranking are newcomers.

As a result, emerging countries and populations that are technologically sophisticated yet underbanked will continue to be sources of fintech innovation.