9 / 17 Relevant items tagged with #Africa
Posts: 504
Posts
Stranded: How Bitcoin is Saving Wasted Energy and Expanding Financial Freedom in Africa
[Jan 24, 2024 7:30 AM] Hundreds of millions of Africans face two problems holding them back from progress: 600 million lack electricity, while virtually all 1.4 billion people on the continent lack high-quality currency. Compare this to the US, Northern Europe, or Japan…
Egyptian Fintech Startup Zeal Secures $4 Million to Fund Expansion to New Markets
[Jan 18, 2024 4:30 AM] The Egyptian fintech startup has revealed that it recently raised $4 million in funding via a round led by venture capital firms Raed Ventures and Cur8 Capital. CEO said the firm’s capital raise is expected to help Zeal accelerate its journey…
Nigerian Crypto Startup Reveals Closure of $2.3 Million Strategic Funding Round
[Jan 17, 2024 6:30 AM] The Nigerian crypto startup revealed on Jan. 16 that the firm had closed a $2.3 million strategic fund to finance the acquisition of operating licenses from different African regulators. Canza Finance said it hopes the new licenses and the defi…
Report: Egypt Wants to Have a Functioning CBDC by 2030
[Jan 16, 2024 2:00 AM] Egypt reportedly aims to launch a central bank digital currency by 2030 to boost the competitiveness of its national currency. According to an Egyptian economic expert, a digital currency issued by the central bank is more secure than privately…
Coinbase Partners With Yellow Card to Expand Access to Its Products in 20 African Countries
[Jan 13, 2024 5:00 AM] The leading crypto exchange Coinbase has said it will expand access to its products to 20 African countries. Coinbase also claimed that its partnership arrangement with the Africa-focused crypto exchange Yellow Card can help increase financial…
Nigerian Stablecoin Consortium Seeks Central Bank Approval After Making a U-Turn on Stablecoin Launch
[Jan 11, 2024 6:30 AM] The Nigerian stablecoin consortium has said it will not be launching a stablecoin in late February as previously advised. Instead, the consortium, which is comprised of banks and fintech startups, said it plans to launch the stablecoin only after…
Nigerian Payments Fintech Startup Cleva Secures $1.5 Million in Pre-Seed Funding
[Jan 10, 2024 3:30 AM] The Y Combinator-backed Nigerian fintech startup has reportedly raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding. Tolu Alabi, the CEO of Cleva, expressed confidence in her and fellow co-founder Philip Abel’s ability to navigate the competitive fintech…
Tunisian Universities’ Hackathons to Boost Understanding of Distributed Ledger Technology
[Jan 9, 2024 5:00 AM] Two Tunisian universities working in collaboration with the blockchain company Dar Blockchain and the Hashgraph Association are set to hold three-day hackathons. Hackathon participants are set to learn how decentralized finance (defi) can help…
Consortium of Nigerian Banks and Fintechs Cleared to Pilot Stablecoin
[Jan 7, 2024 4:30 AM] The Nigerian central bank has given its go-ahead for the Africa Stablecoin Consortium (ASC) to pilot its cNGN stablecoin initiative in the financial regulator’s regulatory sandbox. The ASC asserts that the cNGN stablecoin can prove to be…
Prohibition of Cash Withdrawals From VASPs Operated Accounts May Contradict Central Bank’s Cashless Policy — Nigerian Lawyer
Angolan National Assembly Approves Crypto Law to Safeguard ‘Monetary Sovereignty’
Report: Nigerian Currency Plunges to New Low Versus the US Dollar
[Dec 22, 2023 5:00 AM] The official exchange rate of the Nigerian currency versus the U.S. dollar recently plunged to a record low of 1,248 naira for every greenback. The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria has told the country’s legislators that he sees the…
Ghana’s Securities Regulator Creates Taskforce to Build Capacity for Crypto Asset Oversight
[Dec 20, 2023 12:30 AM] The Ghanaian securities regulator has established a task force which is expected to help it boost its capacity to regulate crypto assets. Ghanaian residents have continued to trade and invest in cryptocurrencies and this has forced the regulator to…
Nigerian Crypto Exchange Describes Deposit Suspension as ‘Industry-Standard Precautionary Measure’
Report: Worldcoin Set to Resume Kenyan Operations in Early 2024
[Dec 18, 2023 5:00 AM] Worldcoin, the iris biometric crypto project, has reportedly reached an agreement with Kenyan authorities which allows it to resume operations in the African country. Worldcoin representatives are said to be “working directly with regulators…
Lesotho’s Entire Payment System Reportedly Goes Offline After Cyberattack
[Dec 16, 2023 7:00 AM] The Central Bank of Lesotho recently confirmed that its payment system was attacked by unknown cybercriminals. The bank also acknowledged that the resulting downtime is making it “impossible for all local banks to honor inter-bank…
Nigerian Central Bank Warns Counterfeiters as Residents Reportedly Grapple With Cash Shortages
[Dec 13, 2023 3:30 PM] As Nigeria grapples with cash shortages, the country’s central bank warned of the presence of counterfeit, higher-denomination naira banknotes. The bank has urged members of the public to report anyone suspected of falsifying or…
Report: South African Financial Institutions Will Soon Offer Services Related to Cryptocurrencies
[Dec 13, 2023 5:00 AM] About 73 applicants who are seeking a license to offer crypto products in South Africa are already registered as accountable institutions with the Financial Intelligence Centre, an executive at the crypto exchange Luno has said. According to the…
Nigerian Web3 Startup Wicrypt Gets Grant From Microsoft to Develop Its Infrastructure Network
[Dec 11, 2023 5:00 AM] Nigerian Web3 startup Wicrypt announced on Dec. 6 that it had received a $150,000 grant from Microsoft. The startup plans to use the grant to improve productivity around its decentralized physical infrastructure network development chain. In late…
Report: 47% of Nigerians Engaged in Crypto-Related Activities
[Dec 10, 2023 4:30 PM] A new study has found that as much as 47% of Nigerians are actively engaged in crypto trading which is now increasingly incorporated in their financial lives. The analysis also showed that crypto ownership in the country grew by 15% between 2020…
Nigerian Crypto Firm Bitmama to Pay $1 Million for Startup That Raised $3 Million in February
[Dec 8, 2023 5:30 AM] The Nigerian crypto platform Bitmama is reportedly set to acquire the African remittances startup Payday for $1 million. Reports of Payday’s acquisition come almost a year after the startup raised $3 million in a funding round…
Former Paxful Top Executive Ray Youssef Joins Rival P2P Platform Noones as CEO
[Dec 8, 2023 2:30 AM] Ray Youssef, the former CEO and founder of the peer-to-peer (P2P) bitcoin trading platform Paxful, has been appointed the chief executive officer of the P2P financial communication app Noones. Youssef also reiterated his belief that bitcoin will…
Report: Kenyan Parliament Committee Approves Bill Proposing to Widen Definition of Securities to Include Crypto
[Dec 6, 2023 5:30 AM] A Kenyan parliamentary committee has reportedly approved a bill that proposes to widen the definition of securities to include cryptocurrencies. The bill proposes a tax on crypto exchanges and digital wallets as well as a capital gains tax on users…
Kenyan crypto tax bill makes it through parliamentary committee
[Dec 5, 2023 6:24 AM] The Capital Markets (Amendment) Bill will now be introduced to the lower chamber of the Kenyan parliament.
Trezor launches education initiative in Africa, funds Bitcoineta trip
[Dec 4, 2023 5:05 AM] Trezor has officially launched its educational program in Africa in addition to funding the local Bitcoin awareness campaign, Bitcoineta, and the Africa Bitcoin Conference.
Block's Decentralized Bitcoin Exchange tbDEX Goes Live In Africa
[Dec 1, 2023 12:05 PM] In a move toward bridging traditional financial systems with the burgeoning world of Bitcoin, TBD, a branch of Block specializing in decentralized technology, unveiled its open source protocol, tbDEX. The protocol, designed to foster trust and…
Nigerian Supreme Court Extends Old Banknote Demonetization Deadline Again
[Dec 1, 2023 5:30 AM] The Supreme Court of Nigeria has again extended the lifespan of the N1000, N500, and N200 naira notes. The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also reiterated that all banknotes, including the previously demonetized naira, remain legal tender “ad…
DeFi could solve Africa’s foreign exchange problems, neobank CEO says
[Nov 30, 2023 2:02 AM] The CEO and co-founder of neobank Canza Finance claims that utilizing Baki for foreign exchange trades in Africa creates a hub for African businesses to participate in intra-African and FX trades at a reduced cost.