Surprising figures from Nigeria
Payment service provider Merchand Machine has commissioned a study on the global crypto score. The results at the top are unsurprising, showing the US ahead of Ukraine, followed by the UK. The study compared categories such as monthly crypto sales, total number of users, percentage of crypto users, number of crypto payment options and number of Bitcoin ATMs in countries around the world. Surprising result: in Nigeria, almost half of the population uses cryptocurrencies!
Back to the top three: Unsurprisingly, the U.S. came in first, followed by war-torn Ukraine and the U.K. in third place. However, the signs are different: the U.S. and the U.K. have great economic power with corresponding interest in assets in various forms. Ukraine, along with Russia, is struggling with its own weak national currency, high inflation and restrictions on monetary transactions. These characteristics can also be applied to other countries and lead to high popularity of cryptocurrencies in economically weak regions In regions.
Percentages
In Ukraine, 12.73 percent of the population uses cryptocurrencies – compared to only 8.31 percent in the first-ranked U.S. and just 4.95 percent in the U.K., but this small percentage holds a relatively high value of cryptos. In countries like Nigeria, the situation is diametrically different, with over 42 percent of the population using cryptos but holding low values.
Merchand Machine analyzed past years in addition to current data and concluded that the number of crypto users worldwide will increase by an average of 14.9 percent by 2030. This growth is likely to be faster in Nigeria, where Binance is partnering with the African country to establish an Export Processing Zone Authority (NEPZA). The goal is to create a Dubai-style digital economic space. The background is Nigeria’s intention to diversify its economy away from oil.
Binance steps on the gas
Nigeria is the next project of the world’s largest crypto exchange after Busan. In Busan, Binance has signed a memorandum of understanding to provide technological and infrastructural support to the city. Besides, Binance recently launched a crypto education center in Cameroon to have another quiver in the African economic space besides Nigeria. This is because there is a dichotomy in Nigeria: despite the high adoption of cryptocurrencies by the population, the government has a rather dismissive attitude. It is seen as a threat and so the central bank has instructed all commercial banks in the country to stop allowing crypto transactions. Running counter to this is the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission, which in May published a set of rules and regulations for digital assets aimed at increasing investor protection and ensuring greater market transparency. Because the lived reality is simply that the population overwhelmingly uses cryptos to counter adverse economic conditions in the country. In any case, it is important to keep this country on the crypto radar and follow the political economic developments in Africa.