Nigeria’s Bitcoin trading volumes in the first half of 2022 almost surpassed $400 million, according to the most recent figures from peer-to-peer cryptocurrency exchange Paxful. The West African country is now the cryptocurrency exchange’s largest market internationally when paired with the $760 million in trading volumes recorded in 2021. Expansion of P2P Trading in Nigeria Peer-to-peer (P2P) Bitcoin trading in Nigeria is expanding at a time when authorities are cracking down on financial institutions that are defying the order of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from February 5, 2021. According to Paxful, the rise in P2P volumes in Africa was caused by a general absence of access to financial institutions in the region. Paxful reported, “For a market like Africa, where many people are underbanked and financial institutions are not as easily accessible, P2P finance provides an opportunity for financial inclusion. There’s been an explosion in Bitcoin adoption in Nigeria due to a multitude of factors: a 33% unemployment rate, an unbanked population of 38 million adults, a young and entrepreneurial community (over 75% of its population is under 35), and financial instability – such as volatility around the Naira.” Volume Increase in Kenya and Ghana The largest market for Paxful internationally is Nigeria. However, Kenya is now the second-largest market in Africa and the fifth-largest worldwide. Its P2P volumes totaled over $200...
