• Bitcoin has recently crossed the $40,000 mark, having been at around $5,000 last March, and it looks like continuing this meteoric rise in the foreseeable future.
• Africa has enthusiastically bought into the crypto craze, with Nigeria being one of the world leaders for bitcoin transactions
The biggest story from the world of finance and technology in 2020 has been the stunning rally in the price of Bitcoin and other crypto-assets. Bitcoin has recently crossed the $40,000 mark, having been at around $5,000 last March, and it looks like continuing this meteoric rise in the foreseeable future.
One of the biggest developments in this regard is the growing acceptance of crypto from many industry leaders and companies, who are now looking to incorporate crypto and blockchain into their operations. One of the best examples of this comes from the online gambling industry. This sector has already seen a lot of traffic over the last year due to the pandemic, but that was built upon even further by several operators electing to use crypto and blockchain in their websites.
Such websites began offering players deposits in crypto to play games, dogecoin blackjack, for example, and thus this option of placing bets in the form of crypto has proved to be extremely popular. In a similar vein, it is likely that crypto, and blockchain in particular, will be the currency of the internet, and there are some leading figures trying very hard to make that happen.
The CEO of Twitter, as well as of payment platform Square, Jack Dorsey, and rapper Jay Z, have recently created an endowment, and funded it with 500 BTC, to encourage bitcoin development in India and Africa. The bitcoin was worth around $23.6 million at the time of funding, although it may have risen in value since then, and it will be in a blind irrevocable trust, which means that the duo will not have any control over how the money is used. The trust is being called Btrust, and it is currently looking for three board members.
This is an important development, as the government in India has been extremely wary and reluctant in embracing bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. In fact, it was recently announced that the government is looking to introduce a bill in Parliament which would ban cryptocurrency ownership and trading in India, while at the same time creating a pathway for its own digital currency.
This is not a positive step for the industry, as India has been one of the biggest contributors to software development, and other advances in the tech industry over the last couple of decades, but is being left behind when it comes to cryptocurrencies. It is also ironic that many crypto exchanges and otherwise related companies are looking to hire Indian engineers and computer experts to help with the next stage of bitcoin development, just as the government is attempting to ban it in the country.
On the other hand, Africa has enthusiastically bought into the crypto craze, with Nigeria being one of the world leaders for bitcoin transactions. In fact, last year, Nigerians traded more than $400 million worth of cryptocurrencies, and the country is only second to the United States globally in terms of total volume of Bitcoin traded in the last five years. The biggest reasons for cryptocurrencies’ popularity in Africa is that it helps ordinary Africans protect themselves against inflation, which is a major problem in most African economies.
It has also helped cross-border transactions and especially came in handy during the #EndSARS protests in Nigeria last year, which was able to continue since funding was possible from all over the world, even though the government shut down bank accounts of those involved.
However, similar to India, there are concerns that the Nigerian government also is looking to regulate the sector heavily, which would harm its growth and prospects. Thus, this initiative by Dorsey and Jay Z is extremely important to help continue the momentum of bitcoin’s growth, as well as introduce it to new markets and stakeholders and therefore allow people to benefit.