Ghana’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has launched the Africa Virtual Asset Summit (AVAS) 2026, which will bring regulators, investors and industry leaders together in Accra on 2 and 3 November 2026.
The two-day event will take place at the Kempinski Hotel Gold Coast City under the theme: “Tokenisation: Africa’s Pathway Towards Building a Trusted, Inclusive and Innovative Virtual Asset Ecosystem.”
A key proposed outcome is the Accra Declaration, setting out shared principles and recommendations for developing responsible virtual asset and tokenisation markets across Africa. The summit will also seek to produce policy recommendations, encourage dialogue between supervisors and market participants, and strengthen cross-border partnerships.
“Africa’s participation in virtual assets is already significant,” said SEC Director-General Dr James Klutse Avedzi at the launch.
“That growth must be matched by frameworks that promote innovation, protect investors and maintain confidence in the market.”
Ghana’s regulatory framework is based on the Virtual Asset Service Providers Act, 2025 (Act 1154), which provides the legal basis for supervised growth in the sector. The SEC is responsible for tokenisation, virtual asset issuance, exchanges, investment advisory services and virtual asset funds.
It also runs a regulatory sandbox where companies can test products under supervision before seeking full licensing. The aim is to ensure regulation reflects practical experience.
Tokenisation and cross-border regulation
The summit will examine how tokenisation can turn assets such as land, gold, cocoa, trade receivables and infrastructure into investable and tradable capital.
“Liquidity is value,” Dr Avedzi said.
By dividing assets into smaller digital interests, tokenisation could widen the investor base, reduce the cost of capital and help finance projects that might otherwise remain inaccessible. In Ghana, it could connect domestic and diaspora investors with productive assets while giving businesses another way to raise finance.
Deputy Director-General Emmanuel Mensah Thompson said AVAS 2026 would be used to promote greater continental consistency in licensing, supervision and market rules.
He cited the example of Ghanaian investors who wanted to participate in a trans-African annuity product but had to route transactions through Canada because of regulatory restrictions in Ghana.
“Ghana needs to lead the path,” he said.
Emomotimi Agama, Director-General of Nigeria’s Securities and Exchange Commission, said in a message to the launch that no regulator could oversee the sector alone because virtual assets operate across borders.
Ghana’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom and Ireland, Her Excellency Sabah Zita Benson, called for partnerships involving investment and technology transfer, combining UK financial-services expertise with Ghana’s entrepreneurial capacity.
Programme and attendance
The first day, from 09:00 to 15:30, will focus on regulation, governance and investor protection, including licensing, market conduct, AML/CFT, stablecoins, supervision and cross-border payments.
The second day, also running from 09:00 to 15:30, will cover tokenisation, digital markets and financial inclusion. Sessions will examine commodities, real estate, digital securities, capital markets, CBDCs and digital payments.
The programme is organised around six themes: licensing, digital securities, AML/CFT, cross-border cooperation, international standards including those set by FATF and IOSCO, and tokenisation. Delegates will also discuss custody, digital identity, payment rails, compliance technology and digital asset infrastructure.
More than 40 speakers are expected, alongside participants from more than 30 countries and over 2,000 attendees. The SEC has invited regulators, central banks, ministries of finance, financial intelligence units, exchanges, financial institutions, virtual asset service providers, technology firms, investors, lawyers, academics and development partners.
