Africa is one region that has not yet completely tapped into the promise of the technology, despite blockchain being on its way to becoming a key component in the upcoming digital revolution of the global economy.

As adoption of cryptocurrencies on the continent has grown over the past two years, this has started to change since blockchain has exploded onto the African fintech landscape.

Africa’s cryptocurrency market is currently the third fastest-growing in the world and is progressively luring significant investments. The usage of cryptocurrencies in Africa increased by more than 1,200% between July 2020 and June 2021, according to the report compiled in 2022 by Chainalysis.

The lack of a financial infrastructure has increased cryptocurrency ownership in nations like Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, and Nigeria, where it is also a popular alternative for holding and moving assets. The Central African Republic became the second nation after El Salvador to recognise bitcoin as legal cash in April 2022.

One of the key areas where blockchain can make an immediate difference is in financial inclusion, where about 45% of people living in the Sub-Saharan are estimated to be unbanked. With the help of P2P bitcoin markets like Paxful and Localbitcoins, millions of people can now access a variety of crucial financial services.

In recent years, a number of cryptocurrency exchanges have also been developed, such as the pan-African exchange Yellow Card, which is currently accessible in around a dozen nations and has expansion plans.