Africa Is Experiencing a Crypto Renaissance

Crypto adoption is making significant advances in Africa, with crypto ownership, trade volume, and regulation all moving toward greater adoption.

A recent report by Arcane Research and Luno found that Uganda, Nigeria, South Africa, Ghana, and Kenya are frequently among the top 10 countries by Google searches for the word “Bitcoin.”

The report describes the continent as “one of, if not the most promising region for the adoption of cryptocurrencies,” emphasizing Africa’s combination of low existing crypto adoption alongside an “enormous” domain possibility.

The firms emphasize that Africa exhibits a young population, frequent monetary crises and currency failures, large unbanked or underbanked populations, and expensive means of payment.

South Africa emerges as crypto hub

While Nigeria has long dominated the continent’s trade volume, the report found that South Africa has the highest percent of cryptocurrency ownership or use among internet users in Africa with 13%, followed by Nigeria with 11%.

Worldwide, South Africa ranks fifth for crypto adoption among connected citizens.

This past week saw South Africa post its second-strongest weekly volume on peer-to-peer Bitcoin (BTC) marketplace Localbitcoins, with nearly $1.65 million worth of BTC changing hands.

Weekly Localbitcoins trade volume: Coin.dance

The surge in trade activity saw total P2P volume for South African trade edge out Kenya last week with $1.95 million in trade across Localbitcoins and Paxful.

Last month, South Africa’s financial regulator issued a policy document asserting that crypto assets and activities relating to virtual currencies “can no longer remain outside of the regulatory perimeter.”

P2P volumes surge across Africa

Nigerian P2P trade is rallying to record highs, producing $9.2 million in combined weekly trade.

Kenyan trade has also seen a recent spike, with Localbitcoins trade between BTC and the Kenyan shilling producing its second-strongest week on record for the third consecutive time.

Morocco and Egypt have also posted record trade activity in recent weeks.

The increase in volume across the continent has also seen P2P volume from Sub Saharan Africa beat out Latin America for the first time.