It’s time for Africa? Why are cryptocurrencies giving the African people financial freedom?
According to crypto experts, the African continent has great conditions for expanding the influence of digital assets. While talking about cryptocurrencies, Africa was previously not mentioned among the top-markets; meanwhile, many things have changed in 2020.
Nigeria and South Africa to lead the holders’ ranking
The year 2019 showed that Turkey, Brazil, and Columbia led the ranking of crypto holders. Based on the ING International Survey 20% of Turkish people owned cryptocurrencies, and such a number turned out to be the best, while African countries had not even entered the top-5.
According to the recent survey, Nigeria heads the ranking with 32% of people owning digital assets, and South Africa entered the top-3 with 17%. The local people are interested in where to buy Bitcoin in Africa to obtain financial freedom.
Inflation to move crypto trading to the new level
Inflation is among the key-note factors to drive the popularity of virtual currencies forward. According to Statista, the ranking of the top-10 countries with the highest inflation rate includes six representatives of the African continent. People understand their funds are melting down step-by-step; hence, the crypto sector came with the best alternative. Whilst fiat money is losing its value, digital assets make people richer.
The US Blockchain research showed that an average amount of African monthly crypto transfers over $10 000 reached the equivalent of $316 million in 2020 (55% growth compared to 2019 numbers).
The boom of younger generations
Who is in charge of the popularization of digital assets? The Medium research shows that 90% of people aged 18-34 have heard about Bitcoin and more than 60% of this age group support digital currencies, understanding virtual assets as a means to revolutionize the traditional economic system. The boom of younger generations is the best connector between Africa and Bitcoin. The percentage of 60+ inhabitants is 5.4% in Africa (compared to 24% in Europe or 21% in North America, for instance), while the percentage of people aged 18-34 is 38.7%.
Young people are interested in the expansion of crypto use. As such, the number of BTC-accepting businesses is on-ramps. Nigeria, South Africa, and Kenia are leaders according to the number of businesses that accept Bitcoin in Africa.
Key-note reasons for crypto to bring the African people financial freedom
The notion of possible financial stability is even discussed among the celebrities. For instance, the world-known Senegalese-American singer Akon hopes that crypto will open new financial capabilities for the African countries. Which are the main points to champion this prediction?
- Cryptocurrencies help people avoid the negative influence of the inflation processes; hence, the threat of losing funds disappears.
- Crypto holders may use mobile devices to pay for their goods and services, facing no limitations.
- Crypto-accepting businesses get a chance to enlarge their customer base, inviting clients from worldwide. Such a capability opens brand new perspectives for every Bitcoin Africa startup.
- Most African people cannot enter the stock market or purchase gold, while digital assets are a perfect investing instrument.
- Virtual currencies empower holders to be independent from governments, as crypto assets are entirely decentralized.
Main obstacles on the way towards crypto expansion in Africa
Africa’s potential for massive crypto adoption is giant; meanwhile, there are some obstacles to slow down this process:
- The lack of Internet covering. Africa has the lowest internet penetration (39% of people have access to the World Wide Web).
- High transaction fees. Top-4 Bitcoin exchanges in Africa monopolize the market, while some African countries even have no alternatives.
- Legislative challenges. There are 6 African countries where digital currencies are banned by the government.
The above-mentioned obstacles are possible to be reduced in the nearest years; hence, Africa gets the highest crypto potential among other continents.
