Young and daring Nigerians are ditching the naira and turning to cryptocurrencies to escape inflation. The oil-rich African nation is being driven towards a whole new economy by its young populace.
Aliyu Pokima, a crypto enthusiast, highlighted that they are wary of bitcoin’s high volatility. He added that they are very much aware of crypto’s benefits and transparency quality and features. Pokima reasoned crypto’s growing popularity in the young Nigerians to the central bank’s poor monetary policies.
He pointed out cryptocurrency’s net impressive returns and gains. The young investors see a breakthrough on the horizon. The coronavirus pandemic has been a driving force too. It had crippled Nigeria’s economy and put millions out of jobs. Moreover, inflation prompted the people to look at alternatives to hedge their wealth. And they zeroed in on bitcoin.
The word-of-mouth spread like wildfire with words of wisdom and encouragement from investors who had made a small fortune through cryptocurrency. In 2020, the Central Bank of Nigeria devalued the naira. This drove more Nigerians to take up crypto.
Another factor was police brutality with the End Sars protests running for weeks. The government reacted b cracking down on protesters’ bank accounts and funding. The End Sars movement garnered donations from former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. Cryptocurrencies decentralized nature attracted more young Nigerians.
Pokima outlined that cryptocurrencies can change the narrative for Nigeria and Africa as a whole. Nigeria was highlighted as the country with the third-highest bitcoin trading volume in 2020. Data shows that around 13 million people in the Giant of Africa hold digital assets.
