Kenya has traded a total of 5,895 bitcoins worth a total amount of Sh6.162b between 2015-2020, the second-highest amount of bitcoins traded in Africa only behind Nigeria that traded bitcoins worth Sh63, 154b in the same period.
The year 2020, according to Paxful’s database, saw more bitcoin trading in Kenya than ever before, with a bitcoin trade worth Sh5.103b. There has been a steady increase in traded bitcoins from January 2020 to August 2020, with August seeing an all-year high in trading (725.1 BTC), the report reveals.
Despite the pandemic and the fact that the year isn’t over, 2020 has seen more bitcoin trading in Kenya than ever before, with 4,524.7 BTC being traded – this is a 319% increase from 2019. The bitcoin trading industry in Kenya was worth more than Sh5 billion in this year alone, which marks an increase of 472% from 2019.
“The recession caused by COVID-19 made people look for financial alternatives – earning income, moving money, etc. and saw crypto as an alternative,” says Brian McCabe, head of market insights, Paxful.
“The problem for them is if the coronavirus continues to weaken their currencies and make the USD stronger, the money will continue to flow out of these economies and their relative debt will increase. If emerging currencies continue to experience pressure, bitcoin could once again become the alternative if people are unable to preserve wealth in their own currency,”
he says.
