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Weekly Roundup: NairaEx Calls for More Industry Policies, FlexID Secures Algorand Funding & More

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In this week’s news roundup, you’ll read about Nairaex’s call for improved industry policies and regulations, FlexID’s successful funding round to offer self-sovereign IDs to the unbanked population in Africa, Ayoken’s pre-seed funding to grow its marketplace, and more.

NairaEx Calls for More Industry Policies, Empowers Web3 Teams With Over N1 million

NairaExNairaEx, a crypto exchange company, has announced it’s building an enabling environment for the Web3 industry by empowering technology teams and also called for more improved industry policies and regulations at the recently held Techpoint Africa Blockchain Summit that was held at Four Points Sheraton in Lagos, Nigeria.

Besides sponsoring the event and hackathon, which NairaEx attributed to its commitment to supporting blockchain development and driving education in Nigeria, the company also gave tech experts, developer teams, founders, blockchain entrepreneurs, policy experts, and tech businesses a glimpse of the different innovations happening around blockchain technology.

Speaking during a panel discussion on regulations and Web3, NairaEx’s Growth Manager, Yomi Bilewomo said, “There is room for the cryptocurrency industry to contribute to the rules and regulations governing them. Tech enthusiasts must explore a way for the government to have both the centralized and decentralized systems obtainable in Nigeria. We believe that with proper regulations and support, the Cryptocurrency market can be an economic game changer for the country.”

The hackathon was also graced with judges from the blockchain and tech industry who awarded three Web3 teams for their design, innovation, relevance, and originality with a $2,500 cash prize. The Chemotronix team emerged first and received $1,250 (approximately N752,000) for building a prototype Internet of Things (IoT) device as part of its solution to reduce carbon emissions and other climate-related problems in Africa using the blockchain. Team Block Baddies won $750 (about N450,000) for creating a digital blockchain library that could be useful to African writers, while Team JPS earned $500 (Over N300,000) for its NFT market for digital fashion assets.

Zimbabwean Blockchain Startup FlexID Secures Algorand Funding to Provide Self-Sovereign IDs to Africa’s Unbanked

Flexid

FlexID, a blockchain startup that’s building a blockchain-based identity system for those excluded from the banking system due to a lack of identity documents, has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Algorand to offer self-sovereign Identity (SSI) to Africa’s unbanked.

FlexID, which became the first Zimbabwean start-up to be selected as a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, will utilise Algorand’s blockchain for its decentralized key management system, and later to perform financial transactions by integrating with other Algorand’s decentralized applications (DApps). The startup’s SSI platform uses a decentralised approach that gives users control over their personal information.

With the received funds, FlexID plans to make its decentralized identity network available in emerging markets where more than one billion people are estimated to lack formal identification.

Ayoken Secures $1.4 Million Pre-Seed Round to Grow its NFT Marketplace

AyokenNigeria’s NFT marketplace for creatives, Ayoken, has successfully secured a $1.4 million pre-seed round to grow its NFT marketplace and enable users to grow their revenue streams via digital collectibles.

Ayokenlabs, which is Ayoken’s marketplace, will feature virtual collectibles from influencers, musicians, and sports brands from across the world.

As reported by TechCrunch, Ayoken received funding from various investors including Founders Factory Africa, Texas-based Kon Ventures, Europe-based venture capital collective Crypto League, Ghana-based R9C Ventures, and Maximus Ventures.

Ayoken’s CEO and Founder, Joshua King, said that the marketplace is a bridge between artists and their fans who help contribute to the success of their idols. King said, “Through VIP passes, fans will get the ability to actually livestream music by these artists before it arrives on Spotify, YouTube or Apple Music. Fans will get discounts for future events too.”

Moreover, fans will have access to tokens such as behind-the-scenes videos and album art. The platform plans to launch NFTs of some major African artists and others across the world over the coming months. So far, Ayoken has partnered with KiDi, a Ghainain afrobeats artist, for his initial NFT drop.

Besides growing its team and secondary marketplace, the startup plans to sign exclusive deals with a number of artists and telcos.

African Bitcoiners Celebrate Bitcoin’s 12th Anniversary

Bitcoin enthusiasts in different cities across the world gathered on May 22, 2022, to commemorate the World Bitcoin Pizza Day, to mark the day when the digital currency was first used to make a purchase in the real world.

12 years ago on May 22, Laszlo Hanyecz, made history when he paid for two pizzas with 10,000 BTC, thus becoming the first person to pay for a real-world item using bitcoin. For the first time this year, Africans took part in the global celebration that brings together thousands of bitcoin users to share their love for digital assets.

The events happened simultaneously last Sunday in 11 African cities including Nairobi in Kenya, Kampala in Uganda, Port Harcourt, Yenagoa, Ibadan, Lagos, Calabar, Kano, Abuja, and Ile-Ife in Nigeria, and Cape Town in South Africa. All the events were organized by independent Bitcoin supporters and entrepreneurs and co-sponsored by Bundle Africa, a digital currency asset management platform besides other country-specific sponsors.

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Weekly Roundup: Africa’s Cassava Network Partners with UniPass to Expand Crypto Adoption in Africa & More

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Cassava Network Partners with UniPass

In this week’s news roundup, you will read about Cassava Network, an African Web3 platform that has partnered with UniPass to advance crypto adoption in Africa, and more.

African Web3 Platform, Cassava Network, Partners with Self-custody Crypto Wallet to Expand Crypto Adoption in Africa

Cassava NetworkCassava Network, an African Web3 platform with a focus on gaming, non-fungible tokens (NFTs), and rewards, has announced the launch of the third version of its platform that features integration with UniPass, a non-custodial smart contract, enabling users to use their email addresses instead of seed phrases and gas. 

The partnership will enable Cassava Network to onboard Africans from Web2 to Web3 as users will be able to create Cassava accounts and automatically sign up to UniPass where they will be able to send, receive, and store on-chain digital assets across various Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) blockchains. 

Speaking about the launch of the new platform version, Mouloukou Sanoh, Co-founder of Cassava Network, said, “Cassava v3 serves as a bridge for global Web3 businesses to connect with African Web2 users.”

Sanoh went ahead to mention that 90 percent of the partners engaging with the community feature of the new version are African businesses. 

Benjamin Obenze, Cassava Network’s Business Developer, in an interview said that African users and businesses will be able to use the new platform version to enter Web3 spaces. 

Nigeria Leads the African Continent with Crypto Leverage Searches on Google

According to an analysis of Google searches done by Leverage Trading, Nigeria scored the second-highest globally (94) for searches related to crypto leverage in the last five years. 

Singapore is the only country that outscored Nigeria with a score of 100 regarding searches but with more emphasis on transactional searches like ‘how to leverage trade crypto’. South Africa and Ghana follow Nigeria closely as both countries have also dominated Google searches for the term ‘trade crypto.’ 

Despite Nigeria leading in the crypto leverage searches and South Africa and Ghana following closely, Leverage Trading established that Africa still lags behind when it comes to searches for the term ‘stock leverage.’ 

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Weekly Roundup: Kenyan Senate in Discussion with CBK to Legalise Bitcoin & More

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In this week’s news roundup, you will read about the Senate initiating talks with the Central Bank of Kenya to develop policies on digital assets, Zambia’s move to test the tech it desires to use for crypto regulation, and more. 

Kenya’s Senate to Hold Discussions with CBK to Legalise Digital Assets

The Committee on Information, Communication & Technology, under the Senate of the Republic of Kenya, has made its intention known that it will engage the Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) and other stakeholders to develop policies on the use of crypto assets and virtual service providers in the country.

The news was shared on the official Twitter page of the Senate of Kenya. The committee is keen on facilitating the development of a crypto regulatory framework that can enable Kenyans to carry out safe and secure crypto transactions. Moreover, the committee also noted that having regulations on cryptocurrency use in the country will help Kenya to harness the benefits of financial innovation while curtailing the risks associated with digital assets. The committee also stated that it is committed to accelerating the implementation of the country’s Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). 

Despite these new developments, the CBK hasn’t outrightly changed its stance on virtual currencies like Bitcoin not being a legal tender. However, the CBK, in 2022, published a discussion paper calling on Kenyans to share their opinions on CBDC as it looked to explore the potential implementation of a CBDC. 

Zambia Testing Technology for Crypto Regulation

The Bank of Zambia and the country’s securities regulator are currently testing technology to allow for the regulation of cryptocurrencies. The news was shared by Zambia’s Technology and Science Minister, Felix Mutati, on the ministry’s website in a move that is aimed at achieving an inclusive digital country.

Speaking about the news, Mutati stated that cryptocurrency is the future that the country desires to achieve,” but a policy framework is required to support this “revolutionary technology.” He went ahead to state that the testing of the technology that will potentially be used to regulate cryptocurrencies in the country will be upscaled in due time as part of deliberate efforts to achieve an inclusive digital economy in the country.

In addition, the minister also claimed that Zambia aspires to become a technology hub in Africa by developing digital infrastructure and attracting investments in the sector. 

South African Startup Momint Keen to Boost Electricity Generation Utilising Blockchain-Based Solution

Momint, a South African startup, recently announced that it had launched a blockchain-powered solution that can alleviate the country’s energy distress by installing more rooftop solar systems in public institutions such as schools and hospitals. 

The company has so far piloted the solution at one local school – Delmas High School – in Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, according to a news report published by News 24. According to the report, investors who are keen to participate in the project can do so by acquiring non-fungible tokens (NFTs) that are linked to solar cells and retail for just under $9. 

The solar cells will then be leased to institutions that agree to buy the generated electricity through a standard power purchase agreement. 

Speaking of his company’s solution, Ahren Posthumus, Momint’s CEO, said, “We are a technology company that’s trying to build for the next 15 years, but what we realized is we can’t build a technology company in a country that doesn’t have electricity.”

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Weekly Roundup: South Africa Introduces New Cryptocurrency Standards to Advertising Code & More

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In this week’s news roundup, you will read about South Africa’s new clause on its advertising code targeted towards the cryptocurrency sector and more.  

South Africa Introduces New Cryptocurrency Standards to Advertising Code

The South African Advertising Regulatory Board (ARB) has introduced a new clause targeted at the crypto industry and aimed at protecting consumers from unethical advertising. 

According to the new clause introduced to Section III of the country’s advertising code, both companies and individuals in South Africa will be required to abide by certain advertising standards in relation to the provision of crypto products and services. The first clause makes it mandatory for adverts, including crypto offerings, to clearly express that crypto investments may result in the loss of capital given the volatile nature of cryptocurrencies. In addition, crypto adverts should not contradict warnings about potential investment losses that investors may face. 

The clause also went ahead to emphasize that adverts for particular services and products must be explained in an easily understandable manner for the target audience. Advertisements must also have balanced messages around benefits, features, returns, and risks associated with the particular service or product. 

Rates of returns, projections, or any kind of forecasts must also be sufficiently substantiated, including how they are calculated and what conditions apply to touted returns. Moreover, any information relating to a crypto product or service’s past performance will not be used to promise future performance or returns, and should, therefore, not be presented in a way that creates ‘a favourable impression of the advertised product or service.’

The clause went on to state that adverts from crypto service providers who aren’t registered credit providers should not push for the acquisition of digital currencies using credit. However, this does not prevent the advertising of associated payment methods provided by crypto service providers. In the same breadth, brand ambassadors and social media influencers will also be expected to comply with certain advertising standards, such as sharing factual information and not offering advice on investing or trading in crypto assets as well as the prohibition of promises of benefits or returns. 

Central African Republic Keen on a Legal Framework for Cryptocurrency Adoption

Central African RepublicCentral African Republic (CAR) has set up a 15-member committee that will be responsible for developing a bill on the use of cryptocurrencies and tokenization in the region.

Once developed, the legal framework will enable cryptocurrencies to operate in the Central African Republic and expedite the development of the country’s economy. CAR’s President, Faustin-Archange Touadéra, believes that digital currencies will help eliminate the country’s financial barriers and build a business-friendly environment that’s supported by a legal framework for crypto usage in the country. 

He went on to say, “With access to cryptocurrencies, the monetary barriers existing until now will disappear, the main objective of the measures adopted by the government being the development of the national economy.”

The committee tasked with drafting the crypto bill comprises 15 experts from five different ministries of CAR, including the Ministry of Mines and Geology, the Ministry of Waters, Forest, Hunting and Fishing, the Ministry of Agriculture ad Rural Development, the Ministry of Town Planning, Land Reform, Towns and Housing and Ministry of Justice, Promotion of Human Rights and Good Governance.

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