Standard Bank driving Africa's trade future at GTR Africa 2026

As Africa’s dynamic economic landscape continues to evolve, the demand for strategic, future-proof trade finance solutions has never been greater. Against this backdrop, GTR Africa 2026 brings together global leaders to delve into the key trends shaping African trade, financing and investment, with a particular focus on unlocking sustainable growth across the continent.

Key themes and essential discussions at GTR Africa 2026

The 2026 agenda focuses on the structural, financial and regulatory dynamics influencing Africa’s trade trajectory. Key themes include the following:

• Making supply chain finance work for Africa: Unlocking efficiency and resilience across African supply chains, discussions will demonstrate how structured finance tools can overcome regulatory barriers, infrastructure gaps and evolving risks to improve liquidity and trade cycles.
• African export diversification and the south-south opportunity: Empowering African exporters to expand beyond traditional markets, this theme examines new trade corridors, exploring opportunities in the Middle East, BRICS nations, Asia and Europe, alongside detailing financial instruments for successful market expansion and risk mitigation.
• Bridging Africa’s infrastructure financing gap: Mobilising innovative funding models and partnerships, we will assess the evolving roles of ECAs, DFIs and domestic capital in delivering bankable projects to close Africa's significant infrastructure deficit.
• Sustainability-linked trade and supply chain finance: Integrating environmental, social and governance (ESG) principles to drive sustainable development, this section clarifies how ESG-driven investment attracts impact capital across Africa, with practical insights into data, reporting and global financing frameworks.
• Driving growth through African banks, funds and capital: Unleashing the power of local and regional capital to stimulate intra-African trade and economic development, discussions will focus on mobilising domestic resources to overcome liquidity challenges for SMEs and enhance the resilience of African trade finance ecosystems.
• Assessing the trade digitisation opportunity: Transforming trade through digital innovation, this topic explores the latest advancements, from AI and blockchain to e-bills and alternative settlement mechanisms, assessing their impact on enhancing compliance, efficiency and financial accessibility across African markets.

Expert African trade finance insights from Standard Bank

As Africa’s leading financial institution, we are committed to driving forward the critical conversations that shape the continent’s economic future. At GTR Africa 2026, our experts will share deep insights and moderate pivotal discussions:

Head of Trade and Supply Chain Finance, Musa Hlanti, will moderate ‘Navigating Risk and Opportunity: A New Playbook for African Export Diversification’. This panel will examine strategies for market diversification, risk mitigation and liquidity optimisation for African exporters.

Regional Head of Trade, Martin Azenga, will lead ‘Trade Finance 2030: Near-future Predictions for the Continent’s Trade Finance Market’. This forward-looking session will explore Africa's trade finance trajectory by 2030, covering key growth corridors, regulatory developments, digitisation trends and emerging payment mechanisms.

Join the conversation at GTR Africa 2026

The GTR Africa 2026 conference offers a strategic platform to gain crucial market intelligence, engage with industry leaders and explore the cutting-edge financing solutions driving trade and investment across the continent.

As Africa’s leading trade finance partner, we remain dedicated to supporting businesses with innovative financing solutions, unparalleled market expertise and strategic advisory services that foster sustainable growth and help drive our trade initiatives across the continent. We invite clients and partners to join us in Cape Town as we engage on the future of African trade finance.

For more details on GTR Africa 2026, including the full agenda and registration, please visit the official event page.