PAXFUL LAUNCHES WALLET APP AND BITCOIN EDUCATION PROGRAMME IN AFRICA

 

• Leading global bitcoin marketplace Paxful hopes to drive entrepreneurship through the bitcoin economy.
• Paxful has more than 2 million users globally.
• South Africa is one of the top markets for Paxful internationally.

 

Through engagements with mobile-savvy customers in Africa, global bitcoin marketplace Paxful has gained valuable insights into how consumers are evolving their use of digital currencies. In particular, bitcoin has become more mainstream in everyday lifestyle and business transactions, as opposed to investment and speculative trading. Based on these insights, Paxful launched its first wallet app to make buying, selling, and storing bitcoin easier. The Paxful wallet app will work seamlessly with the Paxful website, providing secure storage to all customers. It is compatible with Android and iOS devices.

 

PAXFUL’S INVESTMENT IN AFRICA’S YOUTH CONTINUES

Despite the fluctuating bitcoin price, the marketplace has seen significant growth in digital currency transactions on the African continent in recent years, with the surge largely spearheaded by students and graduates under the age of 25. “Africa leap-frogged to the forefront of peer-to-peer finance adaptation. In 2018, our user base in Africa doubled, with most customers being between 18 and 24,” said Artur Schaback, COO and co-founder of Paxful.

 

In response to the growing interest in the crypto-economy among the youth, Paxful has extended its global bitcoin-education programme to include Universities on the African continent. The initiative aims to promote a better understanding of the entrepreneurial opportunities bitcoin and peer-to-peer finance presents. The focus on entrepreneurship is especially apt in Africa, a youthful continent with an enormous appetite for economic development; Statistics South Africa, for example, recently announced that the unemployment rate has seen its highest increase since 2017. Alarmingly, the youth unemployment rate remains at an all-time high of 55.2%.

Paxful pledged to continue aiding the growth of entrepreneurship in emerging markets by giving away bitcoin to those who attend the educational workshops and download the wallet app.

NURTURING YOUTH ENTREPRENEURSHIP, ONE BITCOIN AT A TIME

The #PaxfulCampusTour kicked off in May in South Africa and later moved to Kenya with Nigeria and other African countries in the cards for later in the year. Each student at the workshop is encouraged to download the Paxful app and, if they do so, they will receive bitcoin in their free Paxful wallet. The workshops cover the basics about bitcoin for novices and further expands on innovative use cases and business applications observed around the world for more experienced traders.

Paxful anticipated a total of 450 students to attend workshops across Wits, UCT and Stellenbosch University. Nearly 600 students showed up for the various events in South Africa and over 800 students attended in Nairobi. Paxful is dedicated to running these workshops throughout the year and educating the youth about bitcoin and peer-to-peer finance with the aim of increasing youth access to the financial economy and giving them opportunities to become entrepreneurs.

AFRICA MUST TAKE ADVANTAGE OF THE BLOCKCHAIN ECONOMY

This latest education drive forms part of Paxful’s proven commitment to education, which includes building schools in East Africa under their #BuiltWithBitcoin charitable initiative, as well as providing scholarships to young women in the Middle East. The company aims to build 100 schools across Africa and expand its scholarship programs.

“As a values-driven company, we want to make the bitcoin economy accessible for everyone, especially the underbanked. To this end, we would like to reach as many young people as possible to help them understand the digital currency market and transact safely and with confidence. Our aim is to continue to partner with customers and other key stakeholders to ensure they are well informed about the opportunities presented by peer-to-peer finance,” concludes Ray Youssef, CEO, and co-founder of Paxful.