Why Lisk is Betting on JavaScript, Farmers, and Local Heroes

TL;DR,

• The Lisk EMpower Fund is tapping into Africa’s booming on-chain economy, which saw $205 billion in value move in one year, by funding startups that solve real problems.
•  Lisk’s Ethereum-compatible L2 and JavaScript SDK cut costs and complexity, giving local builders in Africa, Southeast Asia, and LATAM a scalable Web3 path.
• A local-first playbook (grants, regional partners, and gaming onramps) differentiates Lisk from DeFi-chasing rivals, despite governance and regulatory hurdles.

Lisk’s transformation over the past year signals something profound happening in the blockchain world. If 2024 was the year of promises, 2025 is shaping up to be the year of delivery. The platform, long known for its developer-friendly JavaScript SDK, has evolved into one of the few blockchain ecosystems focused on real-world adoption—not in Silicon Valley or Dubai, but across Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America.

Through its $15 million EMpower Fund, technical partnerships, community outreach through its “Lisk Africa” initiatives, Lisk is betting that the next wave of innovation will come from emerging markets. Its strategy is simple: fund builders who solve real economic problems, support localized ecosystems, and offer infrastructure that makes Web3 accessible to everyone.

Betting on Local Builders with the EMpower Fund

When Lisk announced its $15 million EMpower Fund in late 2025, the message was clear—innovation isn’t exclusive to San Francisco or Seoul. It’s thriving in Accra, Nairobi, Jakarta, and beyond. Generally termed as Lisk Africa, the blockchain focuses on providing an ecosystem

The fund targets post-incubation startups solving tangible challenges in local economies, not projects chasing token speculation. Each startup can receive up to $250,000 alongside legal, technical, and governance support plus integration into Lisk’s Layer 2 infrastructure.

Global VCs lost their minds to guesswork. In higher-growth markets like Africa and Southeast Asia, founders are solving everyday financial and infrastructure problems. We want to be the feed for that kind of innovation.

Early recipients reveal Lisk’s priorities:

• Lov.cash (South Africa) — building blockchain-based supply chains for informal traders.
• Afrikabal (Ghana) — connecting farmers to decentralized finance and new markets.
• IDRX (Indonesia) — developing a remittance-optimized local stablecoin.
• SigraFi — tokenizing gold loan notes for small-scale miners.

Each initiative connects blockchain to grounded, everyday realities. In Africa alone, informal businesses account for more than 80 percent of employment yet operate almost entirely in cash. A decentralized ledger that builds credit histories could unlock billions in value.

Lisk’s goal is to close that gap—providing infrastructure, credibility, and mentorship rather than hype. In an interview, Greaves emphasized that regional context is as important as capital:

We’re not flying in foreign mentors for three-day workshops. We’re creating local ecosystems that are sustainable in their own right. That’s how lasting innovation happens.

This local-first philosophy reflects a broader trend: blockchain will take root in emerging markets only through homegrown, culturally aware solutions that work offline, on mobile, and in low-connectivity environments. Real-world asset tokenization, fintechs and even blockchain solutions in agriculture and other platforms are prompted to apply.

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Engineering for Access: The Lisk L2 and Web3 Gaming Push

While the EMpower Fund headlines most discussions, Lisk’s technical roadmap may be its boldest move yet. The platform is an Ethereum-compatible Layer 2 within the Optimism Superchain, giving developers the ability to deploy decentralized apps on Lisk while tapping Ethereum’s liquidity and security.

This alignment marks a leap toward interoperability, one of blockchain’s toughest challenges. Developers can now build in JavaScript using Lisk’s SDK—one of the easiest Web3 toolkits—and deploy across an Ethereum-compatible stack without rewriting their code.

Most African startups can’t afford complex codebases or $20 gas fees. Lisk’s integration with Ethereum removes those barriers. It gives local developers global reach without global costs.

Beyond infrastructure, Lisk is venturing into consumer-facing products. In August 2025, it partnered with Indonesian studio Creo Engine to release PowerPals, its first blockchain-based game. The collaboration marks Lisk’s debut in Web3 gaming—a sector projected to surpass $10 billion in annual revenue across Asia by 2028.

It’s too early to judge the impact, but PowerPals signals a desire to move beyond developer tools toward mainstream adoption. Games have historically served as crypto’s most effective onboarding mechanism—introducing users to wallets, tokens, and transactions in playful, familiar contexts.

Not everything has gone smoothly. A community vote to burn 25 percent of LSK tokens failed in July 2025 because of low turnout despite strong approval. Researcher Elaine Okoro noted: “People believe in the vision, but without incentives or easy participation, governance can become performative rather than practical.”

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Regulation, Competition, and Connectivity: A Local-First Playbook

Expanding across multiple continents brings both opportunity and complexity. Lisk’s focus on Africa, Southeast Asia, and Latin America means confronting distinct regulatory frameworks, inconsistent connectivity, and varied user behavior.

Managing such a wide scale requires effort. Lisk works with local incubators and developer hubs. It has informal ties with Kenya’s iHub Nairobi and supports coding workshops in West Africa to train young developers in blockchain technology.

Regulatory progress remains uneven. While Nigeria and South Africa have published draft digital-asset frameworks, many other nations operate in legal gray zones. Lisk’s grant-driven model helps minimize compliance risk but can limit speed compared to centralized fintechs.

Competition is another hurdle. By entering Ethereum’s ecosystem, Lisk now competes with Polygon, Arbitrum, and Optimism, each boasting larger communities and deeper liquidity. What distinguishes Lisk is its frontier-market focus. Where others chase DeFi and NFTs, Lisk pursues utility and inclusion.

Polygon is developing for the world’s next billion users. Lisk is building with them.

FOLLOW UP: Your Guide to Securing a Cheque from the Lisk Empower Fund

From Blockchain Buzz to Billions in Unlocked Value

Projects like Lisk Africa, the Empower Fund and numerous funding for startups show how blockchain is no longer a speculative industry. Between mid-2024 and mid-2025, $205 billion in value moved on-chain in Sub-Saharan Africa—a 52 percent year-over-year increase, according to Chainalysis. Most of that growth came from stablecoins, remittances, and business payments, not trading.

That evolution fits perfectly with Lisk’s thesis: the technology’s future lies in real economies, not speculative markets. The EMpower Fund’s portfolio—from South African logistics to Ghanaian agriculture—embodies that approach.

If these startups succeed, they’ll prove blockchain can generate tangible benefits in regions long underserved by traditional finance. That’s the kind of story capable of reshaping how investors, regulators, and entrepreneurs view crypto’s role in emerging economies.

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