Nigeria is currently the second country in the world that has the largest crypto market.
Despite the ban on crypto operations in Nigeria’s financial institutions by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the numbers reached by crypto investors are mouthwatering.
According to Statista data, Nigeria is listed top of countries using crypto the most. 32% of the over 170 million population deal with crypto which makes it number one in Africa.
In this post, we’ll discuss why crypto is booming in Nigeria & Africa in 2022.
Cryptocurrency in Nigeria Today
Nigeria is one of the African countries alongside Egypt and South Africa to be introduced to computer technology. Cryptocurrency has also been grabbed by the majority of its populace.
Crypto made a huge statement in Nigeria during the ENDSARSEND SARS protest which got several young Nigerians donating to the movement. Twitter CEO, Jack Dorsey, also donated crypto assets to the course by Nigerians to end police brutality and bad governance.
Young Nigerians have taken the opportunity provided by their smartphones to invest and earn in crypto assets. Today, Nigeria is the second country in the world that has the largest crypto market only behind the USA.
The number of users on P2P platforms such as Prestmit, Remits, and so on has also increased. A lot of Nigerians are also active users of the leading crypto exchanges such as Binance, Coinbase, Kraken etc.
Crypto’s Growth In Africa
Africa is the second-most-populous continent in the world, with around 1.3 billion people. Nigeria, which is Africa’s most populous nation is the vanguard adoption for the entire world.
Africa’s crypto market has grown by over $105.6 billion in the past couple of years. The continent has been surveyed by Chain analysis as the next crypto frontier due to its underdeveloped infrastructure.
Although Africa’s cryptocurrency market share is the smallest, it has however increased significantly in the crypto market. African nations have topped P2P payment platforms in terms of transaction volume across all regions.
Why Crypto Is Booming In Nigeria and Africa in 2022
Nigeria and several other African nations have adopted the use of cryptocurrencies which has made it boom. Several factors contributed to this and are listed below;
1. Crypto is used to hedge inflation– The dollar rate is up in several African countries as a result of high inflation. Mostly, people in these countries get involved in trading and investment in crypto to hedge against inflation of their local currencies such as the Naira.
2. High population of youths – Nigeria for example has one of the youngest populations who are unemployed. With the use of smartphones, the adoption of the use of current trends in technology and finance has been grabbed. Young Nigerians have looked to invest in Bitcoins and other coins which are high and in a boom.
3. Unemployment rate among youths– Lack of employment opportunities has made many youths invest and trade to earn money. Some people trade Bitcoin thus buying and selling on P2P platforms like Prestmit. The idea is to make a profit from the transactions. Others who have taken to cyber fraud also deal with crypto ‘to clean’ their money. This is however one of the reasons crypto transactions are banned in Nigerian financial institutions.
4. Underdeveloped infrastructures in the continent– Crypto has a boom in the continent due to underdeveloped infrastructures, especially in financial institutions. The historic issues of colonialism, civil wars, & harsh terrains have led to infrastructure problems. The financial services which are less accessible coupled with regulations against crypto activities aided the use of peer-to-peer platforms. This led to the boom of crypto in the African continent, especially Nigeria.
Also Read: Where To Buy Top 2022 Cryptos In Nigeria
If you ever need to buy crypto assets in Nigeria or Ghana, Prestmit is one of the best places to do so.
Bitcoin, USDT, Dogecoin and Litecoin are available at good rates on the trading platform.