Follow El Salvador, Central African Republic Adopt Bitcoin As Legitimate Currency

Central African Republic adopts Bitcoin, so it's legal currency. (photo: doc. pixabay)

JAKARTA - The Central African Republic has adopted bitcoin as its official currency, on Wednesday, April 27. They became the first country in Africa and the second in the world after El Salvador to do this.

Despite having rich gold and diamond reserves, the Central African Republic is one of the poorest and least developed countries in the world. Even the country has been gripped by rebel violence for years.

A bill regulating the use of cryptocurrencies was unanimously adopted by parliament last week. According to Obed Namsio, chief of staff of President Faustin-Archange Touadera, the government has approved the bill.

"The president supports this bill because it will improve conditions for Central Africans," Namsio told Reuters, without providing further details.

In the statement, he called it a "decisive step to open up new opportunities for our country".

The Central African Republic is one of six countries that use the Central African CFA franc, a regional currency regulated by the Bank of Central African States (BEAC).

The country's two former prime ministers last week signed a letter expressing concern about bitcoin adoption without guidance from BEAC. They called it a "serious offense".

"BEAC is learning at the same time as the public about the enactment of a new law on cryptocurrencies in the Central African Republic," a BEAC spokesperson told Reuters. It also added that the bank did not yet have an official response to the decision.

Previously, El Salvador became the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as a legal tender last year. But its launch was hampered by skepticism and delayed the bitcoin bond proposal last March amid global market turmoil.

African governments have taken varied approaches to regulating cryptocurrencies and blockchain technology.

On the other hand, Nigeria's central bank banned local banks from connecting with cryptocurrencies last year, before finally launching its own digital currency, eNaira.

South African regulators have also explored the regulatory potential of cryptocurrencies and other blockchain technologies, and Tanzania's central bank said last year it was working on a presidential directive to prepare cryptocurrencies.