Nigerians Turn to Bitcoin Amid Fiat Scarcity

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As of January 29, 2023, Nigeria, the most popular Black nation on earth, with a population of over 200 million people, tops the search for ‘buy Bitcoin‘ on global Google trends. This comes at a time when the country’s election is just a few weeks away.

In October 2022, the Nigerian Central Bank announced the redesign of the country’s currency. As a result, Nigerians were given a deadline of January 2023 to exchange their old notes for new ones within three months after the announcement.

As the deadline draws near, many Nigerians struggle to exchange their old notes due to the unavailability of new ones. Long queues in banking halls and automatic teller machines dispensing old bills added to the woes.

Many Nigerians have gone online to express their concerns about the situation.

Mr. Kingsley Moghalu, a former presidential aspirant, said on Twitter,

“It seems the Naira redesign policy has become a debate about stopping vote-buying politicians versus ordinary citizens being able to carry on normal life with legal tender currency. For some, stopping vote buying means citizens can suffer too. A truly difficult situation. Nigeria!”

Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, a presidential candidate from one of the major parties, also shared his concerns on his Twitter account. Admitting that although this is a global practice, he pleaded with the central bank to extend the deadline to allow the unbanked and artisans ample time to exchange their old bills.

Although the Central Bank has extended the deadline by 10 days, according to the official Twitter account of the Nigeria Presidency, it is still unclear why many Nigerians are turning to crypto at this time. Could it be a result of fiat scarcity or the high inflation rate – or both? Only time will tell.

Leo O Okore is a talented crypto writer with a passion for technology and an ability to distill complex topics into digestible pieces of information. With years of experience writing about cryptocurrencies, Leo has established himself as a leading voice in the crypto community, providing insightful and thought-provoking analyses on the latest developments in the world of digital assets.