The adoption of crypto in Nigeria is growing at an exponential rate. The country currently has more than 50% monthly active adult crypto traders, as a lot of citizens now prefer to store their money in digital currencies over fiat cash, due to the constant devaluation of the Naira.
Despite the Nigerian government’s ban on crypto in 2021, a lot of Nigerians continue to trade in cryptocurrencies. Recent data by Merchant Machines has predicted that by 2030, Nigeria will be at the forefront of global crypto adoption.
Experts have disclosed that if the use of crypto in the country continues to grow exponentially, the entire population of Nigeria will possibly be using digital assets by 2030. Nigeria is reported to be currently leading the pack of countries with the highest interest in crypto despite the bear market experienced in 2022.
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Nigeria has however failed to make it to the top 10 global list of countries utilizing crypto currently, despite the prediction of having full adoption by 2030. However, the prediction that foretells Nigeria’s global crypto takeover, stems from its current position as Africa’s largest crypto market, and also several other challenging economic factors, like the continuous devaluation of its local currency, growing inflation, and worsening economic conditions.
The list of crypto predictions for 2030 places Nigeria in the top spot (100%), followed by the Philippines (86%), Thailand (64%), Malaysia (61%), and India (50%).
Let’s look at some factors that are impacting the adoption of Cryptocurrencies in Nigeria.
Some Factors Impacting Crypto adoption In Nigeria
1.) Financial Hedge/ Freedom
There is no disputing the fact that Nigeria is ravaged by a high poverty rate, where the number of poor people in the country has been predicted to reach 95 million in 2022 by the world bank. The country’s currency, the Naira, has been experiencing hyperinflation lately, making the cost of living high for ordinary citizens. However, cryptocurrencies have continued to serve as a better hedge of financial value, making a large percentage of Nigerians drift towards digital currencies to preserve their savings.
2.) Creation Of Job Opportunities
The unemployment rate in Nigeria is at a high rate, which has been estimated to reach 33 percent this year. However, the crypto industry has opened up a new world of job opportunities for Nigerians, which is one of the reasons for its widespread adoption in the country. In 2020, the number of jobs in the crypto industry multiplied by more than twice the previous number. A lot of Nigerians have leveraged the job opportunities in the crypto industry with so many of them who are full-time crypto traders, doing exceptionally well. Some others have also delved into Crypto writing, Crypto Analysts, NFT Marketing, and the likes.
3.) Remittance Payments
This refers to the money sent by people in the diaspora to their families, which has served as a financial lifeline to most households in Nigeria. It has been reported that the transfers in the African region, make up a more significant share of its cryptocurrency market than any other region. In 2019, Sub-Saharan Africa received about $48 billion of estimated remittances, as a large volume of these payments were coming from Europe.
The unfavorable monetary policies in Nigeria no doubt affected the confidence of Nigerians in sending money home to their loved ones which led to the switch in the use of crypto. Also, it has been reported that currency devaluation made it difficult for a lot of Nigerians’ income to hold their value, which has continued to drive the attraction for crypto remittances.
Conclusion
As the Naira continues to devalue, more and more Nigerians continue to trade and store in digital currencies. The average Nigerian has taken interest in cryptocurrencies, asides from the fact that it serves as a financial hedge, the industry has a lot of opportunities to offer.
Crypto currency has continued to impact the lives of so many Nigerians in different ways, such as creation of job opportunities, crypto trading, and granting financial freedom and many more which has continued to drive its widespread adoption.