The Central African Republic has adopted bitcoin as its official currency, the Presidency said Wednesday, making it the first country in Africa and the second in the world to do so.
Despite its rich gold and diamond reserves, the Central African Republic is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world and has been plagued by insurgent violence for years.
A bill regulating the use of cryptocurrencies was unanimously approved by parliament last week, according to a statement signed by Obaid Namsio, president of the Chief of Staff of the
Faustin-Archange Touadera.
"The president supports the bill because it will improve the situation for Central Africans," Namsey told Reuters, without elaborating.
In a statement, he called it "a decisive step towards opening up new opportunities for our country."
The Central African Republic is one of the six countries that use the Central African CFA franc, a regional currency administered by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC).
Two former prime ministers signed a letter last week expressing concern about the adoption of bitcoin without BEAC guidance, calling it a "serious crime."
A BEAC spokesman told Reuters news agency that "the BEAC came to know about this when the public enacted a new law on cryptocurrencies in the Central African Republic," adding that the bank's There is no official response yet.
El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt a bitcoin as a legal tender last year, but the rollout was hampered by skepticism and led to the proposed bitcoin bond in March amid global market turmoil postponed,
African governments have adopted a variety of approaches to regulating cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.
Nigeria's central bank last year barred local banks from working with cryptocurrencies before launching its digital currency, eNaira.
South African regulators are exploring possible regulation of cryptocurrencies and other blockchain technologies, and Tanzania's central bank said last year it was working on a presidential directive to develop cryptocurrencies.
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