Love it or hate it, cryptocurrencies are here to stay. The world has begun to embrace cryptocurrencies as an exchange currency and not just as a trading commodity.
Last year, El Salvador made headlines as the first country to adopt Bitcoin as legal tender. In April 2022, The Central African Republic followed suit, making it the first African country to do so.
Other African countries like Nigeria, Tanzania, and Kenya have also embraced cryptocurrencies. Nigeria barred its local banks from transacting in cryptocurrency and launched its digital currency, the e Naira.
Cryptocurrency intends to provide an alternative currency for people. It is not regulated by the world’s banking systems. In South Africa, crypto has gained traction with users but is still limited to investments.
Cryptocurrency in Casinos
Certain African countries, including South Africa, are exploring ways of regulating cryptocurrency investments. But as it stands, the use of crypto is still unregulated, and the number of cryptocurrencies is on the rise.
Many South African-based casinos accept Bitcoin as a payment method, though processing may take up to 72 hours.
Many crypto casinos offer a bonus specific to the use of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. You can choose a new no deposit bonus for playing with Bitcoin. Bitcoin and Ethereum are the most popular currencies among players in online casinos.
Regulation
Even South Africa is among the top 20 countries to adopt crypto. It still seems the government and the reserve bank don’t have a clear policy to regulate crypto transactions. It is recognised as an investment and a taxable asset, so it is not exempt from tax by SARS.
This lack of regulation has created more peer-to-peer underground trades in the country and on the continent. This practice is to avoid mainstream platforms as some countries have banned crypto and also to avoid some of the fees attached to crypto transactions.
According to the Reserve bank and other regulatory bodies, anonymity is one of the major issues around crypto. In its current state, it is almost impossible to establish proof of residence or any other KYC requirements. There is also the fear of destabilising the rand should crypto be accepted as legal tender in the country.
Public Perception
Bitcoin in South Africa has always held an exclusive aura since its introduction in 2009. It has always been perceived as something for those with money and unattainable for the rest of the population. This may be true with a recent price tag of almost R1 million per bitcoin.
If not for the super-rich, crypto has also been perceived as something for the millennials, who are more tech-savvy than the older generation. A survey conducted in January of 2022 showed optimism for crypto growth in South Africa, but it’s important to note that this optimistic group was the 46% of high-income earners. It was also interesting to note that millennials were the most optimistic about Bitcoin.
In the past six months, the country has seen a spike in kidnappings, particularly those from wealthy families. Ninety percent of the ransom demands from the kidnappers have been in Bitcoin or other cryptocurrencies. This has fuelled the perception that cryptocurrencies are for criminals and used for nefarious activities.
Currently
In a country with a wide gap between the poor and the rich and an over 50% unemployment rate, crypto may not be accessible to all.
Despite this fact, cryptocurrencies in South Africa are gaining traction. It would help if the government and the reserve bank agreed and developed a policy regarding using crypto in everyday transactions.
On the positive side, several start-up companies have developed platforms that offer crypto exchange services to companies and their customers.
Leading retailers like Pick n Pay and Dis-chem have been able to offer crypto payment options to their customers through the services of such a company.
For e-commerce stores, the transition to the acceptance of crypto has also increased. Stores like take-a-lot and Bid-or-buy accept crypto payments.
Last Words
It seems that a lot of scepticism around the use of cryptocurrency is a misconception and limited knowledge. Once a framework around the use of crypto is developed and implemented, there should be a drive to educate people on how cryptos work.
Perhaps if crypto were to be adopted as legal tender as in EL Salvador, it would also decrease the ambiguity around its use and minimise the risk of money laundering through cryptocurrency transactions.
Whatever the future holds for cryptocurrencies, one thing is certain it is here to stay.
