Aurum’s Africa Push Points to a Bigger RWA Play

2026 market data show significant interest in tokenized commodities, particularly gold. The market for tokenized commodities grew from less than $1.2 billion in early 2025 to approximately $5.5 billion by early 2026, with gold-backed tokens dominating nearly the entire sector. For forward-looking fintech and blockchain companies exploring real-world asset (RWA) tokenization, Africa’s vast gold reserves are increasingly seen as a strategic frontier.

According to Africa Finance Corporation analysis, Arfica’s geological formations contain an estimated $5 trillion worth of gold resources at current mine-site valuations, including more than $1 trillion in undeveloped reserves. 

On the background of visible market trends, Aurum Foundation, AI-powered trading ecosystem, is expanding its Africa focus with the official appointment of Bockarie Albert Kalokoh as Chief of Africa Relations.

The hire brings in someone with experience across government, commercial banking, and private-sector finance at a time when more blockchain firms are trying to build ties with local financial systems and commodity markets. For Aurum, that matters as it continues to build its broader real-world asset strategy.

Kalokoh’s career has largely been shaped by work across Africa’s financial and public sectors. He previously served as Deputy Minister of Finance II, where he was involved in public financial management reforms, revenue-related policy work, and debt sustainability discussions with institutions including the IMF, World Bank, and African Development Bank.

Experience Across Public Finance and Banking

Before his time in government, Kalokoh built much of his reputation in banking. He held senior leadership roles at Sierra Leone Commercial Bank, including Deputy Managing Director and, at times, Acting Managing Director. That part of his career was closely tied to digital modernization efforts inside a traditional banking institution.

Earlier in his career, he worked as a financial analyst at KPMG in Lagos, giving him experience in a regional professional services environment before moving into more senior public and financial leadership roles.

That mix of government finance, banking operations, and institutional engagement is likely what makes him relevant to Aurum’s next phase. Real-world asset projects often talk about tokenization in technical terms, but execution usually depends on something less visible: relationships, regulatory understanding, and credibility across existing financial networks.

Building Links Between Finance and Commodities

Kalokoh’s more recent private-sector roles add another layer to that profile. He currently serves as Senior Vice President at Clinq DMCC in Dubai, where he oversees strategic operations and financial structuring, and as CEO of Clinq Mining SL Ltd in Sierra Leone, where his focus is tied to the country’s mineral sector.

Taken together, those roles place him close to both the financial and commodity sides of the market. That matters for a company like Aurum, which is trying to connect blockchain infrastructure with asset-backed financial models.

In practical terms, Aurum says Kalokoh will focus on building strategic relationships across Africa and strengthening collaboration between financial institutions, commodity producers, and digital asset platforms. His background suggests this is less a symbolic appointment and more a sign that Aurum wants people who understand how these systems work on the ground.

A More Practical RWA Strategy

The broader takeaway is that Aurum appears to be leaning further into the real-world side of real-world assets. That means looking beyond tokenization as a concept and toward the policy, banking, and commodity networks needed to support it.

Kalokoh’s experience does not come from crypto alone. It comes from the institutions, reforms, and financial structures that blockchain projects increasingly need to engage with if they want RWA strategies to move beyond marketing and into execution.