Cryptocurrency based platform, Luno has initiated plans to enter Kenyan and Ghana markets to tap into huge spikes in bitcoin trades on Peer-to-Peer platforms.
The London-headquartered firm has said it is keen on the two markets in Africa expansion plans and ranks them high on its crypto’ exchange list.
“It’s markets we have a keen interest in, and Ghana and Kenya are high on our list. While the outbreak has been beneficial in terms of transactions doubling on the exchange, it’s become harder to travel to talk to key stakeholders,” Luno General Manager for Africa, Marius Reitz told Bloomberg in an interview.
Peer to Peer trades on the African continent have been on an upward trajectory with weekly trading volumes now standing at $14 million, according to Bitcoin Kenya report.
By close of day May 20, 2020, Nigeria lead in trade volumes of over $9 million followed by South Africa (over $1.8 million, Ghana(over $900, 000) and Kenya (over $1.7 million).
Luno’s latest report, The state of Crypto Africa, 2020 shows its rising popularity on the continent and competitive edge in cost effectiveness in digital money transmission.
According to the report, cryptocurrencies offer lower-cost and faster remittance payments than is currently available. Traditional money transmitting services charge very high fees and intra-African payments are often slow.
“The need is great, with expats sending around $48 billion back to families in sub-Saharan Africa last year,”said the report.
Luno has over 4 million customers across 40 countries, backed by leading investors including Balderton Capital and Naspers. Their platform has processed over 8 billion
dollars since launch.
