At a time when the regime is under pressure from the United Nations, there are suspicions that the only state to have adopted Bitcoin, along with El Salvador, is attempting to encourage fraudulent transactions, according to analysts in a report by Africanews on May 5. In an announcement on April 28, President Faustin Archange Touadéra said that the parliament of this impoverished central African nation had enacted legislation “governing all transactions” in cryptocurrencies and designating Bitcoin as a “reference currency” alongside the CFA franc.
Many citizens in CAR don’t know about crypto
The legalization of Bitcoin is a source of consternation in front of one of the city’s few ATMs. “What is it?” Sylvain, a 30-year-old man, waiting in line. “I don’t know what cryptocurrencies are; I don’t even have internet,” Joelle chuckles as she stands in front of her modest vegetable stall. Government spokesman Serge Ghislain Djorie assured AFP said: “We will educate the population and soon move to fibre optics and a weak internet connection is enough to buy cryptocurrency.”
Businessmen have doubts about Bitcoin
Even among the few businessmen who are likely to have the resources, expertise, and technology to take advantage of it, the legislation is a source of consternation. Meanwhile, Ousmène Jacques Mandeng, a professor at the London School of Economics and Political Science, opined: Elsewhere, Didier Loukakou, director of regulation at the Central African Financial Market Supervisory Commission (Cosumaf), stated: Notably, since CAR adopted Bitcoin, the flagship digital asset has seen its price drop below $36,000. However, the asset is $36,048.56 is now trading just above this level, up 0.04% on the day but down 6.63% in the last week, according to CoinMarketCap data.
